blastula

noun blas·tu·la \ ˈblas-chə-lə \

Definition of blastula

plural blastulas or blastulae play \-ˌlē\

: 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

—

blastulation

play \ˌblas-chə-ˈlā-shən\ noun

See blastula defined for kids

Illustration of blastula

Origin and Etymology of 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.

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1875

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

Medical Dictionary

blastula

noun blas·tu·la \ ˈblas-chə-lə \

medical Definition of blastula

plural -las or blastulae play \-ˌlē\

: 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

—