embryology

noun

em·​bry·​ol·​o·​gy ˌem-brē-ˈä-lə-jē How to pronounce embryology (audio)
1
: a branch of biology dealing with embryos and their development
2
: the features and phenomena exhibited in the formation and development of an embryo
embryological adjective
embryologically adverb
embryologist noun

Examples of embryology in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In one sense, the argument coincided with the emerging medical understanding of embryology that characterized pregnancy as a continuum of development and did not consider quickening to be its defining stage. Pam Belluck, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024 Whether human embryos are human beings is a question resolved by human embryology and developmental biology. Robert P. George, National Review, 18 Mar. 2024 Accredited clinics are monitored for their adherence to the guidelines, which include the number of embryos that can be transferred, as well as the quality of embryology labs, qualification of staff and data submission to federal agencies. Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2024 To detect whether these shapes came from an ancestral bat wing or evolved independently, Sears and her colleagues investigated the embryology of different bat species and the genes responsible for the tissue's development. Riley Black, Scientific American, 9 Sep. 2023 See all Example Sentences for embryology 

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin embryologia, from embryo- embryo- + -logia -logy

Note: The Latin word was perhaps introduced by the German physician Martin Schurig (1656-1733), who used it in the title of his Embryologia historio-medica (Dresden & Leipzig, 1732).

First Known Use

circa 1847, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of embryology was circa 1847

Dictionary Entries Near embryology

Cite this Entry

“Embryology.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/embryology. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

embryology

noun
em·​bry·​ol·​o·​gy ˌem-brē-ˈäl-ə-jē How to pronounce embryology (audio)
1
: a branch of biology dealing with embryos and their development
2
: the facts and events characteristic of the development of an embryo
embryological adjective
embryologically adverb

Medical Definition

embryology

noun
em·​bry·​ol·​o·​gy -jē How to pronounce embryology (audio)
plural embryologies
1
: a branch of biology dealing with embryos and their development
2
: the features and phenomena exhibited in the formation and development of an embryo
embryological adjective
also embryologic
embryologically adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on embryology

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!