Ovism

1 definition found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Ovism \O"vism\, n. [Ovum + -ism.] (Zool.)
     The old theory that the egg contains the whole embryo of the
     future organism and the germs of all subsequent offsprings
     and is merely awakened to activity by the spermatozoon; --
     opposed to {spermism} or {animalculism}.
     [Webster 1913 Suppl.]