embryo

UK: /ˈɛmbriəʊ/ US: /ˈɛmbriˌoʊ/ ,(em′brē ō′)

Inflections of 'embryo' (n): npl: embryos

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

em•bry•o /ˈɛmbriˌoʊ/   n. [countable] , pl. -os. 

1. Developmental Biology an animal in the early stages of development in the womb or egg.

em•bry•on•ic /ˌɛmbriˈɑnɪk/  adj. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

em•bry•o  (em′brē ō′), n., pl. -os, adj. 
n. 

1. Developmental Biology the young of a viviparous animal, esp. of a mammal, in the early stages of development within the womb, in humans up to the end of the second month. Cf. fetus.
2. Botany the rudimentary plant usually contained in the seed.
3. Developmental Biology any multicellular animal in a developmental stage preceding birth or hatching.
4. the beginning or rudimentary stage of anything:
   He charged that the party policy was socialism in embryo.

adj. 

5. Developmental Biology embryonic.

• Greek émbryon, noun, nominal use of neuter of émbryos ingrowing, equivalent. to em- em-² + bry- (stem of brýein to swell) + -os adjective, adjectival suffix
• Medieval Latin embryon-, embryo
• 1580–90

embryo-, 

1. a combining form representing embryo in compound words:
   embryology.

Also,[esp. before a vowel,] embry-. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

embryo / ˈɛmbrɪˌəʊ/ noun ( -bryos)

1. an animal in the early stages of development following cleavage of the zygote and ending at birth or hatching
2. the human product of conception up to approximately the end of the second month of pregnancy
   Compare fetus
3. a plant in the early stages of development: in higher plants, the plumule, cotyledons, and radicle within the seed
4. an undeveloped or rudimentary state (esp in the phrase in embryo)
5. something in an early stage of development

Etymology: 16th Century: from Late Latin, from Greek embruon, from bruein to swell