oviparous

/ou'vipərəs/

Thân thiện

Many birds, such as chickens, are oviparous animals.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Egg-laying: Describes an animal that reproduces by laying eggs, with the embryos developing outside the mother's body until hatching. This is a primary mode of reproduction for many animal groups, including birds, most reptiles, amphibians, insects, and fish.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Birds are oviparous animals.
  • The study compared the reproductive strategies of oviparous and viviparous species.
  • Most fish are oviparous, releasing their eggs into the water for fertilization.

Advanced Usage

• Scientific Context: The term is primarily used in biological and zoological contexts to classify reproductive methods.
  • The oviparous nature of the platypus makes it a unique mammal.

Variants and Related Words

• Oviparity (n): The condition or mode of being oviparous; egg-laying reproduction.
  • Oviparity is the most common form of reproduction in the animal kingdom.

Synonyms

• Egg-laying: The direct descriptive synonym.
• Non-viviparous: A technical term meaning not giving live birth (this includes oviparous and ovoviviparous species).

Antonyms

• Viviparous (adj): Giving birth to live young that have developed inside the mother's body.
  • Humans and dogs are viviparous mammals.
• Ovoviviparous (adj): Producing eggs that hatch within the female's body, resulting in the birth of live young.
  • Some species of sharks are ovoviviparous.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. egg-laying