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oviparous

/oʊˈvɪpərəs/
IPA guide

Use the adjective oviparous to describe an animal that lays eggs. Birds and lizards are oviparous.

A chicken is a good example of an oviparous animal, since females lay eggs and then keep them warm and safe until they hatch. In fact, all birds are oviparous, as are most fish, reptiles, and insects. The word oviparous is most often used in biology classes to distinguish egg-laying animals from those that give birth to live babies, like humans. It's a Latin word that combines ovum, or "egg" with parere, "to bring forth."

Definitions of oviparous
  1. adjective
    egg-laying
    synonyms:
    broody
    physiologically ready to incubate eggs
    see moresee less
    antonyms:
    viviparous
    producing living young (not eggs)
    ovoviviparous
    producing living young from eggs that hatch within the body
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