gynæcophore

noun

Receptacle in the bodies of certain male animals (such as schistosomes) in which females may be contained.

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Meanings

noungynæcophore (plural gynæcophores)

plural gynæcophores

  1. biologyReceptacle in the bodies of certain male animals (such as schistosomes) in which females may be contained.

    Diœcious Trematodes are very rare, the most important being the formidable Bilharzia, the male of which is the larger and retains the female in a gyncæcophore, or canal, which is formed by the infolding of the margins of the concave side of the body.

    1877, Thomas Henry Huxley, A manual of the anatomy of invertebrated animals, page 202

Origin

English compound: gynæc- + -o- + -phore: originates from Ancient Greek conjunction: γῠναικο- (gŭnaiko-, “female”) plus -φόρος (-phóros, “bearing”).

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Cite this entry
APA

gynæcophore. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gyn%C3%A6cophore

MLA

“gynæcophore.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gyn%C3%A6cophore. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “gynæcophore,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gyn%C3%A6cophore.

Source: gynæcophore on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.