megasporangium
- noun
- /ˌmɛɡəˈspɔrændʒiəm/
- Specialized
- The ovule of a seed plant contains a megasporangium where the megaspore develops.
Examples
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In ferns, the megasporangium typically produces only a few large spores.
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Botanists examined the megasporangium under a microscope to study the process of spore formation.
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The megasporangium is crucial for the reproduction of ferns.
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In certain plants, the megasporangium develops into a seed.
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The ovule of a seed plant contains a megasporangium where the megaspore develops.
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In ferns, the megasporangium typically produces only a few large spores.
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Botanists examined the megasporangium under a microscope to study the process of spore formation.
Synonyms
A plant part that makes large spores called megaspores in seed plants and some ferns
Surface Forms
Morphology
megasporangium = sporangium (semi-transparent) = mega + sporangium
The word is clearly built from 'mega' + 'sporangium', but the biological sense is specialized rather than fully predictable from the components alone.
Etymology
Megasporangium comes from three parts: mega- 'large', spore 'a single cell that can grow into a new plant', and -angium 'container'. So a megasporangium is simply a 'large spore container', which explains why it is the plant structure that makes the big spores called megaspores.