The theory, formerly held by many, that the sperm or spermatozoon contains the germ of the future embryo; animalculism.

A believer in the doctrine, formerly current, of encasement in the male (see Encasement), in which the seminal thread, or spermatozoid, was considered as the real animal germ, the head being the true animal head and the tail the body.

One of the cells formed by the division of the spermospore, each of which is destined to become a spermatozoid; a spermatocyte; a spermatoblast.

The nucleus of the sperm cell.

The covering of a seed; -- sometimes limited to the outer coat or testa.

A conceptacle of certain lichens, which contains spermatia.

One who treats of, or collects, seeds.

Any ground squirrel of the genus Spermophilus; a gopher. See Illust. under Gopher.

A spermatophore.

Plants which produce seed; phaenogamia. These plants constitute the highest grand division of the vegetable kingdom.

Any plant which produces true seeds; -- a term recently proposed to replace ph/nogam.

Capable of producing seeds; ph/nogamic.

The protoplasm of the sperm cell.

A mass or ball of cells formed by the repeated division of a male germinal cell (spermospore), each constituent cell (spermoblast) of which is converted into a spermatozoid; a spermatogemma.

The male germinal or seminal cell, from the breaking up of which the spermoblasts are formed and ultimately the spermatozoids; a spermatospore.

A sperm cell.

To shut in; to support; to inclose; to fasten.

An arsenide of platinum occuring in grains and minute isometric crystals of tin-white color. It is found near Sudbury, Ontario Canada, and is the only known compound of platinum occuring in nature.

To disperse.

A manganesian variety of garnet.

Spittle.

Parings and refuse of hides, skins, etc., from which glue is made.

That which is vomited; vomit.

One who spews.

The state of being spewy.

Wet; soggy; inclined to spew.

Gangrene.

To affect with gangrene.

Affected with gangrene; mortified.

The process of becoming or making gangrenous; mortification.

Gangrenous part; gangrene; slough.

Vegetable tissue composed of thin-walled rounded cells, -- a modification of parenchyma.

A peculiar sense organ found upon the exterior of most kinds of sea urchins, and consisting of an oval or sherical head surmounting a short pedicel. It is generally supposed to be an olfactory organ.

One of the nonsexual spores found in red algae; a tetraspore.

Same as Spherulite.

Growing in moss of the genus Sphagnum.

Pertaining to moss of the genus Sphagnum, or bog moss; abounding in peat or bog moss.

A genus of mosses having white leaves slightly tinged with red or green and found growing in marshy places; bog moss; peat moss.

Zinc sulphide; -- called also blende, black-jack, false galena, etc. See Blende (a).

A mineral found usually in thin, wedge-shaped crystals of a yellow or green to black color. It is a silicate of titanium and calcium; titanite.

The sphenethmoid bone.

Relating to the sphenoethmoid bone; sphenoethmoid.

Any species of penguin.

Same as Hatteria.

Sphenethmoid.

A cuneiform, or arrow-headed, character.

One skilled in sphenography; a sphenographist.

Of or pertaining to sphenography.

A sphenographer.

The art of writing in cuneiform characters, or of deciphering inscriptions made in such characters.

A wedge-shaped crystal bounded by four equal isosceles triangles. It is the hemihedral form of a square pyramid.

Sphenoid.

The sphenotic bone.

Of or pertaining to a sphere or the spheres.

To place in a sphere, or among the spheres; to insphere.

Having the form of a sphere; like a sphere; globular; orbicular; as, a spherical body.

The quality or state of being spherial; roundness; as, the sphericity of the planets, or of a drop of water.

A small sphere.

The doctrine of the sphere; the science of the properties and relations of the circles, figures, and other magnitudes of a sphere, produced by planes intersecting it; spherical geometry and trigonometry.

See the Note under Microbacteria.

An instrument for facilitating the practical use of spherics in navigation and astronomy, being constructed of two cardboards containing various circles, and turning upon each other in such a manner that any possible spherical triangle may be readily found, and the measures of the parts read off by inspection.

A body or figure approaching to a sphere, but not perfectly spherical; esp., a solid generated by the revolution of an ellipse about one of its axes.

Having the form of a spheroid.

See Spheroidal.

The quality or state of being spheroidal.

Any one of the several symmetrical segments arranged around the central axis and composing the body of a radiate anmal.

An instrument for measuring the curvature of spherical surface, as of lenses for telescope, etc.

Siderite occuring in spheroidal masses.

The body wall of any radiate animal.

Covered or set with spherules; having one or more rows of spherules, or minute tubercles.

A little sphere or spherical body; as, quicksilver, when poured upon a plane, divides itself into a great number of minute spherules.

A minute spherical crystalline body having a radiated structure, observed in some vitreous volcanic rocks, as obsidian and pearlstone.

Of or pertaining to a spherulite; characterized by the presence of spherulites.

Round; spherical; starlike.

Any one of numerous species of sand wasps of the genus Sphex and allied genera. These wasps have the abdomen attached to the thorax by a slender pedicel. See Illust. of Sand wasp, under Sand.

See Sphygmometer.

Of, pertaining to, or designating, a sphincter; as, a sphincter muscle.

Of or pertaining to a sphinx, or the family Sphingidae.

In Egyptian art, an image of granite or porphyry, having a human head, or the head of a ram or of a hawk, upon the wingless body of a lion.

Lemnian earth.

The science of seals, their history, age, distinctions, etc., esp. as verifying the age and genuiness of documents.

A condition of vegetation in which there is too abundant growth of the stem and leaves, accompanied by deficiency of flowers and fruit.

Of or pertaining to the pulse.

A tracing, called a pulse tracing, consisting of a series of curves corresponding with the beats of the heart, obtained by the application of the sphygmograph.

An instrument which, when applied over an artery, indicates graphically the movements or character of the pulse. See Sphygmogram.

Relating to, or produced by, a sphygmograph; as, a sphygmographic tracing.

An instrument for measuring the strength of the pulse beat; a sphygmograph.

An electrical instrument for determining by the ear the rhythm of the pulse of a person at a distance.

Same as Sphygmograph.

Of or pertaining to the Sphyraenidae, a family of marine fishes including the barracudas.

A spy; a scout.

A kind of bandage passing, by successive turns and crosses, from an extremity to the trunk; -- so called from its resemblance to a spike of a barley.

Having the form of a spike, or ear; arranged in a spike or spikes.

Detached; separated; -- a term indicating that every note is to be performed in a distinct and pointed manner.

To season with spice, or as with spice; to mix aromatic or pungent substances with; to flavor; to season; as, to spice wine; to spice one's words with wit.

Spicewood.

One who seasons with spice.

Spices, in general.

An American shrub (Lindera Benzoin), the bark of which has a spicy taste and odor; -- called also Benjamin, wild allspice, and fever bush.

Bearing ears, or spikes; spicate.

Spike-shaped.

In a spicy manner.

The quality or state of being spicy.

A spike or nail.

An umbelliferous herb (Meum Athamanticum) having finely divided leaves, common in Europe; -- called also baldmoney, mew, and bearwort.

Having spikes, or ears, like corn spikes.

The state of having, or being full of, ears like corn.

See Spicose.

A little spike; a spikelet. A pointed fleshy appendage.

Resembling a dart; having sharp points.

To sharpen to a point.

A minute, slender granule, or point.

Having the shape of a spicule.

Producing or containing spicules.

A division of sponges including those which have independent siliceous spicules.

Same as Spicule.

Flavored with, or containing, spice or spices; fragrant; aromatic; as, spicy breezes.

Any one of numerous species of arachnids comprising the order Araneina. Spiders have the mandibles converted into poison fangs, or falcers. The abdomen is large and not segmented, with two or three pairs of spinnerets near the end, by means of which they spin threads of silk to form cocoons, or nests, to protect their eggs and young. Many species spin also complex webs to entrap the insects upon which they prey. The eyes are usually eight in number (rarely six), and are situated on the back of the cephalothorax. See Illust. under Araneina.

Infested by spiders; cobwebbed.

Like a spider.