spawn

²spawn

noun

Definition of SPAWN

1

: the eggs of aquatic animals (as fishes or oysters) that lay many small eggs

2

: product, offspring; also : offspring in great numbers

3

: the seed, germ, or source of something

4

: mycelium especially prepared (as in bricks) for propagating mushrooms

Examples of SPAWN

1. Pacific salmon return to Alaskan streams to deposit their spawn.
2. <sometimes I think those little brats are the spawn of Satan himself>

First Known Use of SPAWN

15th century

Related to SPAWN

Synonyms: fruit, get, issue, posterity, progeny, seed, offspring

Related Words: brood, hatch, litter, young; child, scion; family, kin; lineage, stock

Near Antonyms: ancestor, antecedent, father, forebear (also forbear), forebearer, forefather, grandfather, parent, primogenitor, progenitor

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Other Zoology Terms

altruism, integument