Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
fertilized ovum

fertilized ovum

4.2
A cell formed when a sperm joins an egg that becomes a new animal
  • noun
  • /ˈfɜrtəˌlaɪzd ˈoʊvəm/
  • Specialized
: ovulo fertilizado
  • Estrogen and progesterone continue to be secreted and are responsible for the proliferation of the endometrium in preparation for implantation of the fertilized ovum.

Just like when you were just a fertilized ovum, you were one step cell, stem cell, pluripotential cell.

Examples

  • The fertilized ovum is the first stage of development for all mammals.

  • A new organism develops from the fertilized ovum after the sperm fertilizes the egg.

  • Within the fertilized ovum lies the capability to form an entire organism.

    Academic text (1990)

  • During the first 2 weeks of human gestation, the fertilized ovum is already sensitive to drugs, and after this, drugs may produce congenital malformations in the fetus in the first trimester.

    Academic text (2011)

  • After the union of the sperm and egg, a fertilized ovum forms, marking the beginning of a new life.

Synonyms

zygote
vsfertilized ovum
  • Specialized
13 8.2

A single cell made when a sperm and egg join

refers to the same initial cell but uses a different name
fertilized egg
vsfertilized ovum
  • Specialized
8 2.9

An egg joined with a sperm that starts to grow into an embryo

focuses on the single cell origin rather than later embryo development

Surface Forms

fertilized ovum singular
fertilized ova plural

Morphology

fertilize + ovum

The meaning is directly compositional: 'fertilized' = having been joined with a male gamete and 'ovum' = an egg cell, so 'fertilized ovum' straightforwardly denotes an ovum that has been fertilized. This modifier–noun biomedical construction is regular and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Fertilized ovum is the single cell that forms when a sperm joins an ovum and makes it fertilized. This tiny cell, called a 'zygote', has both parents' genes and is the start of a new life, so the name explains the event it describes.