Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Germ
1.
(Biol.)
That which is to develop a new individual;
as, the
; the earliest form under which an organism appears. germ
of a fetus, of a plant or flower, and the likeIn the entire process in which a new being originates . . . two distinct classes of action participate; namely, the act of generation by which the
germ
is produced; and the act of development, by which that germ
is evolved into the complete organism. Carpenter.
2.
That from which anything springs; origin; first principle;
as, the
. germ
of civil libertyDisease germ
(Biol.)
, a name applied to certain tiny bacterial organisms or their spores, such as
– Anthrax bacillus
and the Micrococcus
of fowl cholera, which have been demonstrated to be the cause of certain diseases; same as germ{4}. See Germ theory
(below). Germ cell
(Biol.)
, the germ, egg, spore, or cell from which the plant or animal arises. At one time a part of the body of the parent, it finally becomes detached, and by a process of multiplication and growth gives rise to a mass of cells, which ultimately form a new individual like the parent. See
– Ovum
. Germ gland
. (Anat.)
See
– Gonad
. Germ stock
(Zool.)
, a special process on which buds are developed in certain animals. See
– Doliolum
. Germ theory
(Biol.)
, the theory that living organisms can be produced only by the evolution or development of living germs or seeds. See
Biogenesis
, and Abiogenesis
. As applied to the origin of disease, the theory claims that the zymotic diseases are due to the rapid development and multiplication of various bacteria, the germs or spores of which are either contained in the organism itself, or transferred through the air or water. See Fermentation theory
.Germ
,Verb.
I.
To germinate.
[R.]
J. Morley.
Webster 1828 Edition
Germ
GERM
,Noun.
1.
Origin; first principle; that from which any thing springs; as the germ of civil liberty, or of prosperity.