espermatozoide (Spanish)
Where does "espermatozoide" come from?
The Spanish word 'espermatozoide' was borrowed from the French 'spermatozoïde'. This term was constructed to describe the male reproductive cell, combining Greek roots meaning 'seed' and 'animal' to highlight its perceived active, life-bearing nature.
Full etymology tree
- espermatozoide (Spanish), 'spermatozoon (reproductive cell of the male)'
- borrowed spermatozoïde (French), 'spermatozoon, sperm, sperm cell'
- compound σπέρμα (spérma) (Ancient Greek), 'seed'
- derived σπείρειν (speírein) (Ancient Greek)
- compound ζῷον (zôion) (Ancient Greek), 'animal, beast'
- derived ζῆν (zên) (Ancient Greek), 'present active infinitive of ζῶ (zô)'
- suffix -ides (French)
- compound σπέρμα (spérma) (Ancient Greek), 'seed'
- borrowed spermatozoïde (French), 'spermatozoon, sperm, sperm cell'
Ancestors
- spermatozoïde (French)
Updated July 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris