| 释义 |
▪ I. germ, n.|dʒɜːm|
Also 7–9 germe.
[a. F. germe:—L. germen sprout, of doubtful etymology; referred by some to the root *gen- of gignĕre to beget, by others to the root ges- of gerĕre to bear.]
1. That portion of an organic being which is capable of development into the likeness of that from which it sprang; a rudiment of a new organism.
germ- is often used attrib. by mod. biologists for the female reproductive element, in opposition to sperm-; see 5 and 6.
a. in vegetables.
1644Digby Nat. Bodies xxiv. 217 Can these germes choose but pierce the earth in small stringes, as they are able to make their way? 1777Priestley Matt. & Spir. (1782) I. xvii. 201 Mr. Bonnet supposes..that all the germs of future plants..were really contained in the first germ. 1784Cowper Task iii. 521 Then rise the tender germes, upstarting quick And spreading wide their spongy lobes. 1802Paley Nat. Theol. xx. 396 The germ grows up in the spring, upon a fruit stalk, accompanied with leaves. 1843Lowell Prometh. 124 Good, once put in action or in thought, Like a strong oak, doth from its boughs shed down The ripe germs of a forest. 1873Symonds Grk. Poets i. 1 What made the Jew a Jew, the Greek a Greek, is as unexplained as what daily causes the germs of an oak and of an ash to produce different trees.
b. in animals.
1650[see gallature]. 1793Holcroft Lavater's Physiog. xxiv. 120 We can easily conceive that defective juices may produce defective germs. 1816Kirby & Sp. Entomol. (1828) I. 345 The germe of a future assassin of the larva that is to spring from that deposited by its side. 1841–71T. R. Jones Anim. Kingd. (ed. 4) 72 Upon the outer aspect of the newly-formed germ a little spherical body may be detected. 1878Huxley Physiogr. xv. 257 Coral-polypes..can also multiply by means of germs, which are thrown off from the parent as free-swimming bodies.
c. gen.
1798Malthus Popul. i. i. (1806) I. 3 The germes of existence contained in the earth. 1836Macgillivray tr. Humboldt's Trav. xvii. 222 The idea of those great inundations which for some time extinguished the germs of organic life upon the globe. 1858Carpenter Veg. Phys. §6 Every organised structure..had its origin in another, which produced a germ capable of living and growing. 1862Goulburn Pers. Relig. i. (1873) 10 Who could have believed that the germs of all the fair objects which we behold in nature were in that void and formless earth?
2.
†a. In the Linnæan nomenclature: The ovary (obs.).
b. The seed. lit. and fig.
a.1759B. Stillingfl. Wks. (1762) Introd. 30 An oblong thickish substance with six furrows along its sides. This contains the seed, and is called the germen or germ. 1794Martyn Rousseau's Bot. i. 23 The swollen base, with three blunted angles, called the germ or ovary. 1829Togno & Durand Materia Medica 93 Germ [of Crane's Bill Geranium] Egg-shaped.
b.1823Scott Peveril xx, The germs of her wilful and capricious passions might have been sown during her wandering and adventurous childhood. 1848Lytton Harold x. iii, Does the new ground reject the germs of the sower?
3. In early use, vaguely, the ‘seed’ of a disease. In mod. use, a micro-organism or microbe; often, one of the microbes which are believed to cause disease.
1803Med. Jrnl. IX. 484 The vaccine virus must act in one or other of these two ways: either it must destroy the germe of the small-pox..or it must neutralize this germe. [A passage translated from Fr.] 1871Tyndall Fragm. Sc. (1879) II. xiii. 210 No germ from the kitchen air had ascended the narrow necks. 1897Muir & Ritchie Bacteriology i. 2 Other general words, such as germ, microbe, micro-organism, are often used as synonymous with bacterium, though, strictly, they include the smallest organisms of the animal kingdom.
4. fig. That from which anything springs or may spring; an elementary principle; a rudiment. in germ: in a rudimentary form.
1777W. Dalrymple Trav. Sp. & Port. lxxi, Thereby to eradicate every germe of liberty. 1786T. Jefferson Writ. (1859) I. 605 The only germ of dissension, which shows itself at present, is in the quarter of Turkey. 1810Wellington in Gurw. Desp. (1838) V. 537 We ought to..encourage to remain here all the gentlemen of the country, as a germ of insurrection. 1816Keatinge Trav. (1817) I. 222 An apathy..nips all efforts at action in their germ. 1846Wright Ess. Mid. Ages II. xi. 38 Every country has possessed, in its own primeval literature, the first germ of romance. 1868M. Pattison Academ. Org. v. 227 The idea exists in germ in the University itself. 1879Farrar St. Paul (1883) 543 His keen eye marked the germs of coming danger.
5. attrib. and Comb., as (sense 1 a) germ-case, germ-filament, germ-form, germ-forming, germ-life, germ-particle; (sense 3) germ-breeder, germ-cloud, germ-nursery, germ-sac, germ-stage; also germ-caused, germ-free, germ-like, germ-proof adjs.
1895Westm. Gaz. 7 Aug. 2/1 There is no *germ-breeder like an outcast.
1859Todd Cycl. Anat. V. 31/2 The more general appellations of *germ-cases or germ-sacs may be more appropriate.
1931J. S. Huxley What dare I Think? i. 10 The numerous brood of *germ-caused diseases.
188419th Cent. Feb. 331 The disease-germs..rising in *germ-clouds and wafted by air-currents.
1889Bennett & Murray Cryptog. Bot. 20 An inner endospore..which bursts through the exospore on germination, producing the *germ-filament.
1879tr. Haeckel's Evol. Man I. 192 This highly important and interesting *germ⁓form is called the germ-cup, or the intestinal larva (Gastrula, Fig. 22).
1859Todd Cycl. Anat. V. [124]/1 The separation of the *germ-forming and yolk-forming portions from each other.
1933D. L. Sayers Murder must Advertise iv. 69 We spend our whole time asking intimate questions of perfect strangers... ‘Are you Sure that your Toilet-Paper is *Germ-free?’ 1951M. McLuhan Mech. Bride 61/1 When scrubbed, deloused, germ-free,..then she is lovely to love. 1969Times 28 Jan. 6/7 The apparatus for the germ-free birth..is designed to make possible a cure for a deficiency disease of the body's immune defence system.
1875E. White Life in Christ iii. xx. (1878) 288 Here we are thrown back upon some considerations on the phenomena of *germ-life in general.
1793Holcroft Lavater's Physiog. xxiv. 122 To me it appears that something *germ-like..must previously exist in the mother. 1894C. S. Ashley in Pop. Sci. Monthly XLIV. 458 Industrial society, like all other organisms, begins with a simple germ⁓like state.
1897Daily News 1 June 3/2 The lack of any sort of attempt at efficient sanitation, must, I think, have made of the place a *germ nursery [etc.].
1889H. Campbell Causation of Disease 135 The slightest dislocation of the ultimate *germ and sperm-particles will modify the entire future development of the embryo.
1902Daily Chron. 12 July 5/2 A *germ-proof house is the latest addition to the hygienic terrors of life. 1940Illustr. London News 23 Mar. 376/1 (caption) Nurses in germproof clothing sealing the bottles.
1859*Germ-sac [see germ-case]. 1885Syd. Soc. Lex., Germ-sac, the vesicular blastoderm of mammals.
1882Bastian in Quain's Med. Dict. 533/1 The different kinds of contagia..may in essence be..cast-off micro-organisms of a low type, either in their ‘finished’ condition or in a *germ-stage.
6. Special comb.: germ-area (see quot.); germ bomb, a bomb containing germs, used in germ warfare; germ-cell (see quot.); also germ-cellule; germ-centre [tr. G. keimcentrum (W. Flemming 1884, in Arch. f. mikrosk. Anat. Sept. 55)], a group of pale-staining cells forming the central area of a lymphatic nodule; germ-cone, a rudimentary volcanic cone; germ-cup, a gastrula; germ-disk = germ-area; germ-force (see quot.); germ-gland, one that produces germs; germ-layer = germinal layer; germ-line = germ-track; germ-mass (see quot.); germ-membrane = blastoderm; germ-plasm, the protoplasm peculiar to a germ or ovum (see quots.); spec. [tr. G. keimplasma (A. Weismann Über die Vererbung (1883) 15)] that part of the germ-cell which, according to Weismann's theory of heredity, bears the factors determining the transmission of characters from parent to offspring and is itself transmitted unchanged from generation to generation; = id1, idioplasm; also germ-plasma; germ-polyp, a polyp produced by gemmation; germ-pore, -shield (see quots.); germ-spot = germinal spot; germ-stock (see quot.); germ-theory, ‘the theory of the origin of many diseases in the morbific influence of certain fungi, which are introduced into the organism by means of their germs or spores’ (Syd. Soc. Lex. 1885); germ-track (see quot. 1949); germ-tube, the tube-like growth emitted from a spore in germination; germ-vesicle = germinal vesicle; germ warfare, the deliberate dissemination of disease-germs among an enemy as a weapon of war; = bacteriological warfare; germ-yolk (see quot.).
1879tr. Haeckel's Evol. Man I. 292 The small, circular, dull whitish spot which lies at a particular point on the outer surface of the..‘intestinal germ-vesicle’..is the ‘intestinal germ-disc’..Sometimes..it was called the ‘germ-disc’..more usually the *germ-area.
1934Archit. Rev. LXXV. 98/2 But I visualize poison, explosive, incendiary and *germ bombs in an air-fleet attack. 1954Ann. Reg. 1953 133 American airmen who, as prisoners, had confessed to using ‘germ bombs’ had retracted their confessions.
1855Owen Comp. Anat. Invertebr. (ed. 2) 673 *Germ-cell, the first nucleated cell that appears in the impregnated ovum, after the reception of the spermatozoon and the disappearance of the germinal vesicle. 1868Carpenter Microsc. §251. 335 The Sexual distinction of the Generative cells into ‘Sperm-cells’ and ‘Germ-cells’.
1846Dana Zooph. v. §89 (1848) 92 This new *germ-cellule enlarges.
1898E. A. Schäfer Essentials Histology (ed. 5) xxv. 152 Active multiplication of the lymph-cells by karyokinesis is..the cause of the formation of nodules in the tissue... On this account the nodules are sometimes termed *germ-centres. 1906Practitioner Nov. 708 The tonsils are composed of lymphoid tissue, which, besides being diffused throughout the whole organ, is collected at various intervals into small nodules, in which the lymphocytes are closely packed... These nodules are sometimes spoken of as germ-centres. 1956Yoffey & Courtice Lymphatics, Lymph & Lymphoid Tissue (ed. 2) v. 269 There is increased activity of the lymphoid tissues in response to bacterial injections, and..the main site of the reaction is the germ centre.
1849Dana Geol. vii. (1850) 362 They illustrate the *germ-cone, proceeding from eruptions by overflowings, and through fissures.
1879tr. Haeckel's Evol. Man I. 192 *Germ-cup [see germ-form in 5].
1857Dunglison Med. Lex., *Germ-force, plastic force.
1878Bell Gegenbaur's Comp. Anat. 185 The excretory ducts of the paired *germ-glands are, in both sexes, united with the hind-gut.
1879tr. Haeckel's Evol. Man I. 13 For example, the sexual organs of the human embryo..appear to originate from the middle *germ-layer.
1925E. B. Wilson Cell (ed. 3) iv. 312 In some animals the germ-cells are set aside from the somatic cells at a very early stage in the ontogeny, so that we can actually trace their line of ontogenic descent or *germ-line backwards to early stages of development. 1968R. Rieger Gloss. Genetics & Cytogenetics 204 Germ line, a lineage of ‘generative’ cells..ancestral to the gametes..which, during the development of an organism (particularly in animals), are set aside as potential gamete-forming tissues.
1855Owen Comp. Anat. Invertebr. (ed. 2) 673 *Germ-mass, the material prepared for the formation of the embryo, consisting of the derivative germ-cells and the yolk which they have assimilated.
1879tr. Haeckel's Evol. Man I. 197 The *germ-membrane, or blastoderm.
1889Mivart in Dublin Rev. Oct. 282 It is only the *germ-plasm which has the power of reproducing an organism. 1889S. Schönland tr. Weismann's Continuity of Germ-Plasm in Ess. upon Heredity 168, I propose to call it the theory of ‘The Continuity of the Germ-plasm’, for it is founded upon the idea that heredity is brought about by the transference from one generation to another, of a substance with a definite chemical, and above all, molecular constitution. I have called this substance ‘germ-plasm’. 1890G. Allen in Academy 1 Feb. 84/1 The germ-plasm is the essential part of the germ-cell, and determines the nature of the individual that arises from it. 1890Billings Med. Dict. I. 577/2 Germ plasma, the substance from which the sexual products are developed. According to the theory of Weismann, a portion of the ovum is preserved, unaltered in constitution, to give rise to the sexual bodies, while the rest of the ovum is altered to produce the tissues of the body. 1893Germ-plasm [see id1]. 1905Westm. Gaz. 30 Mar. 2/1 The germ-plasm is the hereditary substance of the germ-cell, or the primary constituent substance of the whole organism. 1957Encycl. Brit. XIII. 608/1 The continuity of the germ-plasm..suffices to account for the inheritance of the great majority of characters common to all individuals of a species without the need of postulating contributions from the body-cells.
1846Dana Zooph. iv. §61 (1848) 63 *Germ-polyps differ essentially in their mode of increase.
1887tr. De Bary's Fungi iii. 100 Many of these pores serve as places of exit for the tubular outgrowths from the spore at the time of germination, and may therefore be termed *germ-pores.
1879tr. Haeckel's Evol. Man I. 297 The dull-coloured shield-shaped spot itself is the first rudiment of the dorsal portion of the embryo. We will call it briefly the ‘*germ-shield’ (notaspis).
1861J. R. Greene Man. Anim. Kingd., Cœlent. 60 Some furnished with germ-vesicle and *germ-spot, others in a more advanced stage of development.
1885Syd. Soc. Lex., *Germ stock, the term applied to the part of the body from which budding takes place in those animals in which a distinct special area is set apart for the purpose of generation by gemmation.
1871Tyndall Fragm. Sci. (1879) I. v. 138 The *germ-theory of epidemic disease.
1893Parker & Rönnfeldt tr. Weismann's Germ-Plasm vi. 184 The transmission of the germ-plasm from the ovum to the place of origin of the reproductive cells..takes place in a regular manner, through perfectly definite series of cells which I call *germ-tracks. 1906Rep. Brit. Assoc. 1905 434 In Ascaris..there are two chromosomes in the fertilised egg, and in all the nuclei in the ‘germ-track’. 1949Darlington & Mather Elem. Genetics 394 Germ track, the lineage of cells in the development of an organism, particularly in animals, which are potential ancestors of germ cells, as opposed to somatic cells.
1890Billings Nat. Med. Dict., *Germ-transmission, inheritance from the Mother as opposed to Sperm-transmission.
1887tr. De Bary's Fungi iii. 109 In nutrient solutions it [the spore] usually puts out *germ-tubes. Ibid. 110 This the first product of germination is accordingly known as the germ-tube.
1855Owen Comp. Anat. Invertebr. (ed. 2) 673 *Germ-vesicle or Germinal vesicle. 1861Hulme tr. Moquin-Tandon ii. i. 48 The Egg is essentially composed of the germ-vesicle or cicatricula, and of a protecting envelope.
1938Harper's Monthly Mar. 367 Lurid descriptions of death rays, rocket planes, *germ warfare. 1940Blunden Poems 1930–1940 228 Revival of germ warfare. 1953Encounter Oct. 15/2 The stories of germ warfare in Korea. 1963Ann. Reg. 1962 395 Porton, a British Government Research establishment set up 20 years before to study germ warfare.
1855Owen Comp. Anat. Invertebr. (ed. 2) 673 *Germ-yolk, that portion of the primary yolk of the egg which is assimilated by the germ-cells in the formation of the germ-mass. In some animals the whole yolk is so assimilated, in others (sepia e.g.) only a small portion, the remainder being the ‘food-yolk’, and absorbed by the future embryo or young animal.
Add:[1.] d. Bot. That part of a seed, spec. of the grain of wheat or other cereals, which consists of the embryo and scutellum, esp. considered as a component of flour. Cf. wheat germ s.v. wheat n. 4 b.
1876A. H. Church Food ii. i. 61 In Child's ‘Decorticator’, for example, this thin bran, together with the germ of the grain, is first of all removed. 1904W. C. Edgar Story of Grain of Wheat ii. 28 When the wheat is made into flour a mechanical separation of the different parts takes place, the germ and bran layers are removed, and the flour cells are granulated. 1931H. C. Sherman Vitamins (ed. 2) ii. 92 Whole corn, corn germs, corn germ meal, gluten feed, hominy feed, and whole ground corn meal were found to contain considerable amounts of vitamin B. 1985J. Yudkin Penguin Encycl. Nutrition 385 The wheat grain (wheat berry) consists of three major parts. These are the bran, constituting about 12{pcnt} of the weight of the grain, the germ, about 3{pcnt} and the endosperm, about 85{pcnt}.
▪ II. germ, v.|dʒɜːm|
[in early use, ad. F. germe-r, f. germe germ; the current word is f. germ n.]
1. intr. To put forth germs or buds; to bud, sprout. Now only fig.
1483Caxton Gold. Leg. 391 b/2 Whan the brannches been cutte of the knotte that remayneth..It germeth and bryngeth forth newe buddes in al the places of the cuttyng. 1500–20Dunbar Poems lxxxvii. 3 Fresche flour of ȝouthe, new germyng to burgeoun. 1797W. Taylor in Monthly Rev. XXIII. 572 Liberty may germ there, prolong its roots, and come to timber. 1863Mrs. C. Clarke Shaks. Char. xiv. 346 He almost constantly allows a dormant passion to germ and sprout forth, and effloresce by slow degrees. 1885Longm. Mag. VI. 539 Dreaming of some new project germing in his ever fertile brain.
2. trans. To cause to germinate. rare—1.
1841Catlin N. Amer. Ind. (1844) I. iii. 18 The mud and soil in which they [trees] were germed and reared has been washed out from underneath them.
Hence ˈgerming vbl. n. (in quot. attrib.); ˈgerming ppl. a., fig. that is ‘in the bud’, rudimentary, undeveloped.
1872Blackie Lays Highl. 19 And the present fades from vision On the germing future bent. 1880Kinglake Crimea VI. vi. 165 As yet unrelieved by any germing sense of security. 1883Contemp. Rev. June 827 The aboriginal savage, with whose germing æsthetics we started these remarks. 1894Liberal 1 Dec. 69/2 With no soft places in his soul for better and holier influence to find a germing ground. |