| 释义 |
seed
I. \ˈsēd\ noun
(plural seed or seeds)
Etymology: Middle English sed, seed, from Old English sǣd; akin to Old High German sāt seed, Old Norse sāth, Gothic manaseths seed of men, world, Old English sāwan to sow — more at sow
1.
a. : something that is sown or to be sown
< as he sowed, some seed fell along the path and the birds came and devoured it — Mk 4:4 (Revised Standard Version) >
b. : the fertilized and ripened ovule of a seed plant comprising a miniature plant usually accompanied by a supply of food (as endosperm or perisperm), enclosed in a protective seed coat, often accompanied by auxiliary structures (as an aril or caruncle), and capable under suitable conditions of independent development into a plant similar to the one that produced it — see endocarp illustration
c. : a propagative portion of a plant: as
(1) : spore
(2) : a dry seedlike fruit (as a caryopsis or seedball)
(3) : a vegetative reproductive structure (as a bulb, corm, or tuber)
d.
(1) : milt, semen, sperm
(2) : any of various eggs especially of insects or other arthropods
(3) : any of various developmental stages of lower animals suitable for transplanting; specifically : spat
e. : the condition or stage of bearing seed
< in seed >
2. : progeny
< the green turban which proclaimed him to be of the seed of the Prophet — Lawrence Durrell >
3. : something from which development or growth takes place : a beginning or source : germ
< planted a seed of suspicion in me, which by now has grown to a conviction — Thomas Wood †1950 >
< the bill had had a far-reaching effect and was the seed of reform — Roger Burlingame >
4. : something that resembles a seed in shape or size: as
a. : a small bubble in glass
b. : a small usually glass and gold or platinum capsule used as a container for a radioactive substance (as radium or radon) to be applied usually interstitially in the treatment of cancer
5.
a. capitalized : inner light
b. : homoeomery 1
6. : a nucleus in seeding; especially : a crystal added to a liquid to cause crystallization
7. : a player who has been seeded in competition
•
- go to seed
II. verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
Etymology: Middle English seden, from sed seed
intransitive verb
1. : to go to seed : grow to maturity and produce seed
2. : to sow seed : plant
3. : to crystallize or form a precipitate or aggregate as the result of seeding : grain
transitive verb
1.
a. : to sprinkle with seed : plant seeds in : sow
< seed a plot with barley >
b. : to cause to be filled or furnished with something that grows or stimulates growth or development
< a breeder reactor seeded with plutonium — Time >
c.
(1) : to inoculate with microorganisms
(2) : to inoculate (neighboring or distant tissues) by dispersion from the parent focus — used of bacteria or cancer cells
d. : to supply with nuclei (as of crystallization or condensation)
< seed a saturated solution with solid particles of solute >
especially : to treat (a cloud) with solid particles (as silver iodide crystals) for the purpose of converting supercooled water droplets into ice crystals in an attempt to produce precipitation artificially or to dissipate a supercooled cloud
e. : to allow or cause (as lard or syrup) to form granules or crystals by cooling
2.
a. : to plant by scattering on or in the soil
< seed another crop in the field >
< seed beets in the spring >
b. : to distribute at random : scatter
< several hundred bright young intellectuals who were seeded into overseas aid and information programs — Daniel Bell >
3.
a. : to extract the seeds from (stone fruit)
b. : ripple I 1
4. : to give rise to : stimulate the development of
< although the theory is still not finally proved, it seeded a whole generation of fruitful study — George Gamow >
5.
a. : to arrange (the draw in a sports event) so that certain contestants (as those of superior ability or of the same team) will not meet in the early rounds of competition; also : to arrange the order of competition of (contestants) by seeding
b. : to rank (a contestant) relative to others in a tournament on the basis of previous record
III. adjective
Etymology: seed (I)
1.
a. : grown or retained for the production of seed
< a seed crop >
b. : selected or used for planting or cultivation to produce a new crop or stock
< seed corn >
< seed flax >
< seed potato >
< seed virus >
c. : left or saved for breeding
< a seed population >
2. : incompletely developed : small
< the ovaries full of seed eggs >
IV.
substandard
past of see |