pseudogamy
|pseu-do-ga-my|
🇺🇸
/ˈsuːdəˌɡæmi/
🇬🇧
/ˈsjuːdəˌɡæmi/
false/triggered fertilization
Etymology
'pseudogamy' originates from Greek, specifically the words 'pseudos' and 'gamos', where 'pseudos' meant 'false' and 'gamos' meant 'marriage'.
'pseudogamy' entered scientific usage via New Latin/Neo-Latin (e.g. 'pseudogamia') and was adopted into English with the modern spelling 'pseudogamy'.
Initially the components meant 'false marriage', but over time the term came to denote biological phenomena resembling sexual union without standard genetic fusion of gametes ('pseudo-fertilization').
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
in botany and plant reproduction: a form of apomixis in which pollination or the presence of pollen is required to stimulate seed development, but the embryo develops without genetic contribution from the pollen (i.e., development is parthenogenetic while fertilization only contributes to endosperm or acts as a trigger).
Many apomictic species reproduce by pseudogamy, where pollination triggers seed formation but the embryo is genetically maternal.
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Noun 2
in zoology and general biology: a type of reproduction (often called gynogenesis) in which sperm stimulates egg development but does not contribute genetically to the embryo.
Certain fish and amphibian populations reproduce by pseudogamy, with males providing only a trigger for egg development.
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Last updated: 2025/10/10 23:26