blastula

noun

blas·tu·la | \ ˈblas-chə-lə

plural blastulas or blastulae\ ˈblas-chə-ˌlē

Definition of blastula

: an early metazoan embryo typically having the form of a hollow fluid-filled rounded cavity bounded by a single layer of cells — compare gastrula, morula

History and Etymology for blastula

borrowed from New Latin (in a German context), from Greek blastós "shoot, bud, embryo" + New Latin -ula (as in gastrula, planula) — more at -blast

Note: Term apparently introduced by the Russian zoologist and embryologist Vladimir Vladimirovič Zalenskij ("W. Salensky," 1847-1918) in "Bemerkungen über Haeckel's Gastraea-Theorie," Archiv für Naturgeschichte, 40. Jahrgang, 1. Band (1874), p. 162.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about blastula

Dictionary Entries near blastula

Statistics for blastula

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for blastula

The first known use of blastula was in 1875

See more words from the same year

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for blastula

blastula

noun

blas·tu·la | \ ˈblas-chə-lə

plural blastulas or blastulae\ -ˌlē

Medical Definition of blastula

: an early metazoan embryo typically having the form of a hollow fluid-filled rounded cavity bounded by a single layer of cells — compare gastrula, morula

Other Words from blastula

blastular \ -lər

\ adjective

blastulation \ ˌblas-chə-ˈlā-shən

\ noun