# germe
## French
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin germen.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʒɛʁm/
* Audio:(file)

### Noun

germe m (plural germes)
* germ (small mass of cells)
* seed
* bulb (of onion, garlic etc.)
* (figuratively) seed (the principle cause)

### Verb

germe
* inflection of germer:
** first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
** second-person singular imperative

### Further reading

* “germe”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

## Italian
### Etymology

From Latin germen (“seed; origin”), from Proto-Italic *genamen, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁mn̥ (“offspring, seed”), derived from the root *ǵenh₁- (“to give birth, to beget”). Cognate with Irish giniúint (“procreation, birth”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈd͡ʒɛr.me/
* Rhymes: -ɛrme
* Hyphenation: gèr‧me

### Noun

germe m (plural germi)
* (biology) germ
* (literary) seed, sprout
** 1822, Alessandro Manzoni, “La Pentecoste [The Pentecost]”, in Inni sacri [Sacred Hymns]‎, collected in Opere varie di Alessandro Manzoni, Fratelli Rechiedei, published 1881, page 678, lines 101–104:I doni tuoi benefica ¶ Nutra la tua virtude; ¶ Siccome il sol che schiude ¶ Dal pigro germe il fiorMay your benevolent virtue nourish your gifts, like the sun that opens the flower from the lazy sprout
* (figurative) seed, beginning, origin
** (Can we date this quote?), Niccolò Tommaseo, Dolore e speranza [Sorrow and Hope], collected in Poesie di Niccolò Tommaseo, Successori Le Monnier, published 1872, page 196, lines 21–24:Senz'affanni non germoglia ¶ Dell'onore il germe santo ¶ Seminai, Signor, nel pianto; ¶ Nella gioia mieterò.The holy seed of honor blossoms not without trials. I sowed, o Lord, in weeping; I shall reap in joy.
* (figurative, archaic) son, offspring
** 16th century, Annibale Caro, transl., Eneide [Aeneid]‎, Florence: Leonardo Ciardetti, translation of Aeneis by Virgil, published 1827, Libro VI, page 270:[…] la Sibilla ¶ A dir riprese: Enea, germe del cielo, ¶ Lo scender ne l'Averno è cosa agevole; ¶ Chè notte e dì ne sta l'entrata apertathe sibyl continued, "O Aeneas, son of the heavens, descending into the Avernus is easy, for its entrance is open night and day
* (figurative, archaic, rare) lineage, progeny

#### Derived terms

* germe di grano
* germicida

#### Related terms

* germinale
* germinare

### Anagrams

* merge

## Middle French
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin germen.

### Noun

germe m (plural germes)
* seed (fertilized grain)

## Portuguese
### Alternative forms

* gérmen

### Etymology

From Latin germen (“bud, seed, embryo”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to bear”) + *-mn̥.

### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /ˈʒɛʁ.mi/ [ˈʒɛɦ.mi]
* (Brazil) IPA: /ˈʒɛʁ.mi/ [ˈʒɛɦ.mi]
** (São Paulo) IPA: /ˈʒɛɾ.mi/
** (Rio de Janeiro) IPA: /ˈʒɛʁ.mi/
** (Southern Brazil) IPA: /ˈʒɛɻ.me/
* (Portugal) IPA: /ˈʒɛɾ.mɨ/
* Hyphenation: ger‧me

### Noun

germe m (plural germes)
* germ (embryo of a seed)
    Synonym: embrião
    Antonyms: casca, pericarpo
* germ; microorganism
    Synonyms: microorganismo, micróbio
* germ (idea that forms the basis of some project)
    Synonyms: origem, ideia

#### Related terms

* germano
* germicida
* germinação
* germinado
* germinador
* germinadouro
* germinal
* germinante
* germinar
* germinativo

### Further reading

* “germe”, in iDicionário Aulete (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2024
* “germe”, in Dicionário inFormal (in Portuguese), 2006–2024
* “germe” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913
* “germe”, in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2024
* “germe”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2024
* “germe”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2024