unfertilized
3
5.1
- adjective
- /ʌnˈfɜr.tɪ.laɪzd/
- Specialized
:
no fertilizado
- The scientist observed that a sample of unfertilized eggs could still develop under the right conditions.
- unfertilized egg
Examples
-
When a frog is attacked by a predator, it will often lay thousands of unfertilized eggs in one large, slimy mass.
-
And let's say she laid an unfertilized egg, like a chicken egg.
-
In theory, it should also be possible to store unfertilized oocytes.
Academic text (1997) -
ELLIE: Can't we see the unfertilized eggs?
-
...in unfertilized emu or ostrich eggs.
-
But studies of unfertilized prairies that have been mowed for decades show that they are still producing biomass.
Academic text (2007) -
The populations that I am studying are entirely female and reproduce by parthenogenesis; that is, reproduction without males through the development of an unfertilized egg.
Academic text (1994) -
In the lab, they examined the genetic material inside the unfertilized egg to study early development.
-
The gardener noted that the unfertilized soil needed nutrients before planting any seeds.
Synonyms
A female animal or egg not fertilized by a male
How Developed
14
1.0
- Specialized
- Philippine
1
9.9
- Specialized
8
2.9
- Specialized
3
5.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
unfertilized = fertilized (transparent) = un + fertilize + ed
The adjective is formed by regular negation 'un-' applied to 'fertilized', a standard adjectival form of the verb 'fertilize'.
Etymology
Unfertilized is built from un- 'not' and fertile 'able to produce new life or crops'. So an unfertilized egg or seed has not been made fertile and will not grow into a chick or a plant.