sporophore Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a spore-bearing branch or organ: the part of the thallus of a sporophyte that develops spores; in ferns and mosses and liverworts is practically equivalent to the sporophyte

WordNet


Spo"ro*phore noun
Etymology
Spore + Gr. to bear.
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) (a) A placenta. (b) That alternately produced form of certain cryptogamous plants, as ferns, mosses, and the like, which is nonsexual, but produces spores in countless numbers. In ferns it is the leafy plant, in mosses the capsule. Cf. Oöphore.

Webster 1913