The point at which an embryo becomes a fetus has apparently been chosen arbitrarily.
Source: tatoeba (2366896)
Embryo
/ˈɛmbɹi.əʊ/
Synonyms for "embryo" (29 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (6)
Strong matches (9)
Related words (14)
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: bud, buds, conceptus, early form, egg.
- Sentence evidence is available for embryo, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from derived_reverse, wordnet, opengloss.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "embryo".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "embryo"
Keep "embryo" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "embryo" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "embryo", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "embryo" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
14 entriesMore specific
6 entriesCollocations
6 entriesembryo developmentembryo sacembryo transferembryogenic culturehuman embryoplant embryo
Inflections
1 entriesDerivations
3 entriesTranslations
104 translations across 66 languages.
Albanian
1 entries- embrion noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Ancient Greek
2 entries- κύημα noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ἔμβρυον noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Arabic
1 entries- جَنِين noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Armenian
1 entries- սաղմ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Azerbaijani
2 entries- embrion noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- rüşeym noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Belarusian
2 entries- заро́дак noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- эмбрыён noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Bengali
1 entries- ভ্রুণ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Bulgarian
2 entries- ембрио́н noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- заро́диш noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Burmese
2 entries- သန္ဓေသား noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- သားလောင်း noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Catalan
1 entries- embrió noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Chinese Cantonese
1 entries- 胚胎 noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Chinese Mandarin
2 entries- 胎 noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- 胚胎 noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Czech
2 entries- embryo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- zárodek noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Danish
1 entries- embryon noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Dutch
1 entries- embryo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Esperanto
1 entries- embrio noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Estonian
1 entries- embrüo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Finnish
1 entries- alkio noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
French
1 entries- embryon noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Georgian
2 entries- ემბრიონი noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ნაყოფი noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
German
1 entries- Embryo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Greek
1 entries- έμβρυο noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Hebrew
1 entries- עֻבָּר \ עובר noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Hindi
1 entries- भ्रूण noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Hungarian
3 entries- embrió noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- magzat noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ébrény noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Icelandic
1 entries- fósturvísir noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Indonesian
2 entries- embrio noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- janin noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Italian
1 entries- embrione noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Japanese
1 entries- 胚 noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Kazakh
2 entries- эмбрион noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ұрық noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Khmer
4 entries- គភ៌ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ជីវាណូ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ពីជៈ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ភ្រូណ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Korean
3 entries- 배 noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- 배아 noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- 태아 noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Kyrgyz
2 entries- түйүлдүк noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- эмбрион noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Lao
3 entries- ຄັບພະລູກ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ຈາວ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ພັນ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Latvian
1 entries- embrijs noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Lithuanian
2 entries- embrionas noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- gamalas noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Macedonian
1 entries- ембрио́н noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Malay
3 entries- embrio noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- janin noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- mudghah noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Mongolian
1 entries- үр хөврөл noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Māori
1 entries- kikiri noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Northern Kurdish
1 entries- cenîn noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Norwegian Bokmål
1 entries- embryo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Norwegian Nynorsk
1 entries- embryo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Pashto
1 entries- جنين noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Persian
2 entries- جنین noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- رویان noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Polish
2 entries- embrion noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- zarodek noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Portuguese
1 entries- embrião noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Romanian
1 entries- embrion noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Russian
2 entries- заро́дыш noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- эмбрио́н noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Sanskrit
2 entries- गर्भ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- भ्रूण noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Serbo-Croatian
4 entries- zàmetak noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ȅmbrio noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- ȅmbriōn noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- е̏мбрио noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Slovak
2 entries- embryo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- zárodok noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Slovene
1 entries- zarodek noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Spanish
1 entries- embrión noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Swedish
1 entries- embryo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Tagalog
1 entries- bilig noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Tajik
1 entries- ҷанин noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Thai
1 entries- เอ็มบริโอ noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Turkish
2 entries- cenin noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- embriyo noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Turkmen
1 entries- şine noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Ukrainian
2 entries- ембріо́н noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- заро́док noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Urdu
1 entries- جنین noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Uyghur
1 entries- ھامىلە noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Uzbek
2 entries- embrion noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- homila noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Vietnamese
2 entries- phôi noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
- phôi thai noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Volapük
1 entries- brüom noun (fertilized egg before developing into a fetus)
Sample sentences
16 total sentences available.
A developing embryo connects to the placenta via the umbilical cord.
Source: tatoeba (3660559)
When a coral egg and sperm join together as an embryo, they develop into a coral larva, called a planula. Planulae float in the ocean, some for days and some for weeks, before dropping to the ocean floor. Then, depending on seafloor conditions, the planulae may attach to the substrate and grow into a new coral colony at the slow rate of about .4 inches a year.
Source: tatoeba (6684640)
This is a human embryo.
Source: tatoeba (8450072)
Showing 4 of 16 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "embryo"?
Closest matches include bud, buds, conceptus, early form, egg.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "embryo"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.