What does "biogenesis" mean?
The principle that living organisms are produced only from other living organisms.
Biogenesis
/bʌɪə(ʊ)ˈdʒɛnəsɪs/ noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The principle that living organisms are produced only from other living organisms.
- Grammar: biogenesis is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: biogeny, biosynthesis, birth, development.
- Useful contrasts: abiogenesis.
- Usage evidence: And thus the hypothesis that living matter always arises by the agency of pre-existing living matter, took definite shape; […] It will be necessary for me to refer to this hypothesis so frequently, that, to save circumlocution, I shall call it the hypothesis of Biogenesis; and I shall term the contrary doctrine—that living matter may be produced by not living matter—the hypothesis of Abiogenesis.
How to use "biogenesis"
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Source and review context
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Definition decision workflow
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 The principle that living organisms are produced only from other living organisms. uncountable, usually
"And thus the hypothesis that living matter always arises by the agency of pre-existing living matter, took definite shape; […] It will be necessary for me to refer to this hypothesis so frequently, that, to save circumlocution, I shall call it the hypothesis of Biogenesis; and I shall term the contrary doctrine—that living matter may be produced by not living matter—the hypothesis of Abiogenesis."
- 2 the production of living organisms from other living organisms wordnet
- 3 Biosynthesis. uncountable, usually
- 4 production of a chemical compound by a living organism wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"And thus the hypothesis that living matter always arises by the agency of pre-existing living matter, took definite shape; […] It will be necessary for me to refer to this hypothesis so frequently, that, to save circumlocution, I shall call it the hypothesis of Biogenesis; and I shall term the contrary doctrine—that living matter may be produced by not living matter—the hypothesis of Abiogenesis."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "biogenesis"?
Common synonyms include: biogeny, biosynthesis, birth, development, generation, genesis.
How do you use "biogenesis" in a sentence?
And thus the hypothesis that living matter always arises by the agency of pre-existing living matter, took definite shape; […] It will be necessary for me to refer to this hypothesis so frequently, that, to save circumlocution, I shall call it the hypothesis of Biogenesis; and I shall term the contrary doctrine—that living matter may be produced by not living matter—the hypothesis of Abiogenesis.
How do you pronounce "biogenesis"?
Pronounced /bʌɪə(ʊ)ˈdʒɛnəsɪs/.
Etymology
From Ancient Greek βῐ́ος (bĭ́os, “life”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷeyh₃- (“to live”)) + γένεσις (génesis, “origin, source; manner of birth; creation”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁tis (“birth; production”)). The words biogenesis and abiogenesis were both coined by English biologist Thomas Henry Huxley (1825–1895) in 1870 (see the quotation). The word biogenesis was first used by English physiologist and neurologist Henry Charlton Bastian (1837–1915) around 1869 to mean “life-origination or commencement” in an unpublished exchange of correspondence with Irish physicist John Tyndall. However, in an 1871 book, Bastian announced he was adopting a new term, archebiosis, because of the confusion that might be caused by Huxley’s use of biogenesis with a different meaning. Equivalent to bio- + genesis.