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ovary

[ oh-vuh-ree ]

noun

plural ovaries.
  1. Anatomy, Zoology. the female gonad or reproductive gland, in which the ova and the hormones that regulate female secondary sex characteristics develop. Compare testis ( def ).
  2. Botany. the enlarged lower part of the pistil in angiospermous plants, enclosing the ovules or young seeds.


ovary

/ ˈəʊvərɪ; əʊˈvɛərɪən /

noun

  1. either of the two female reproductive organs, which produce ova and secrete oestrogen hormones
  2. the corresponding organ in vertebrate and invertebrate animals
  3. botany the hollow basal region of a carpel containing one or more ovules. In some plants the carpels are united to form a single compound ovary
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

ovary

  1. The reproductive organ in female animals that produces eggs and the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone. In most vertebrate animals, the ovaries occur in pairs. In mammals, the ovaries contain numerous follicles, which house the developing eggs (oocytes).
  2. See more at menstrual cycle
  3. The part of a carpel or of a gynoecium made of fused carpels that contains the ovules in a flower. The ovary is located at the base of the carpel and ripens into a fruit after fertilization of one or more of the ovules.
  4. See more at flower
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Derived Forms

  • ovarian, adjective
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Other Word Forms

  • ܻ·v· noun plural pseudovaries
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Word History and Origins

Origin of ovary1

First recorded in 1650–60; from New Latin ōܳ; ovum, -ary
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Word History and Origins

Origin of ovary1

C17: from New Latin ōܳ, from Latin ōܳ egg
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

At 20 weeks, a team of 15 doctors at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford carried out a five-hour operation to remove the cancerous cells on both ovaries behind the womb.

From

I will also need to have my ovaries removed by the age of 40 to reduce my risk of developing ovarian cancer.

From

Meanwhile Lucy will inject herself with trigger shots to stimulate the follicles within her ovaries to increase the number of eggs produced which will be retrieved, and then made into embryos with Ollie's sperm.

From

IVF - or in vitro fertilisation - involves the removal of eggs from a woman's ovaries, which are then fertilised with sperm in a laboratory.

From

Karen’s six-year-old granddaughter was born with a mass on her right ovary.

From

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