germ
11
5.6
- noun
- /dʒɜrm/
:
germen
- When you get right down to it, that one contains the germ of the whole story.
- germ of an idea
- germ theory
And he says, I sense in these the contracted germ of the future.
- And he says, I sense in these the contracted germ of the future.
- And the form would be your the germ, absolute germ of your story, the log line.
- And I think I really see in that paper saw a few of the germs of what later became the book Difficult Conversations.
- We're doubtful because the the germ of fear spread in our body because somebody planted it there one time or we cultivate it with our own thoughts.
- Thick tedious lips to abide them generous dream to teach its endless germ in the clean way, the cleanest way.
Examples
-
For here is the germ of the platform Lincoln will make for the Republican Party a full decade later.
Academic text (2001) -
And who can't read that in Rousseau without realizing that there is a significant germ of truth in what, in what he says?
-
"We are trying to explain to you the germ of the story, our error and yours.
Fiction book (1996) -
And he says, I sense in these the contracted germ of the future.
-
Yeah, well, gardening is really the germ of all my work.
-
Your question carries with it the germ of something, because the fact is it already happens a great deal.
Academic text (2000) -
And pretty soon, we had the germ of this idea about a kid who goes back in time and ends up in high school with his parents.
-
Armed with the germ of an idea, Gerritsen develops a story.
Academic text (2008) -
Eliot may have been thinking of Daniel Deronda when she mentioned the "germ of some new work."
Academic text (2016) -
The conference began with a small discussion, but that was just the germ of a much larger project.
Synonyms
∞
2.6
A place or thing where something comes from
154
4.9
A small idea that starts a larger project or plan
7
9.9
The first basic thing or cause from which everything develops
A basic idea that starts a plan or project
Compounds
- Specialized
1
4.0
An idea that infectious diseases are caused by tiny organisms like bacteria or viruses
- Specialized
A main group of cells in a young animal before birth that forms body parts
- Archaic
Living material in reproductive cells that contains genes and passes traits to offspring
- Specialized
Thin tube that grows out of a spore when it starts to grow, often in fungi
How Developed
Surface Forms
Etymology
Germ comes from Latin germen, meaning 'seed' or 'bud', and you can see the same root in germinate. A 'germ' of an idea is the small seed that can grow into a big plan, which is why we use germ for a first or starting idea.