n.
Pronunciation: ' jem-( ˌ )yül
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from Latin gemmula, diminutive of gemma
Date: circa 1828
: a small bud: a : a theoretical particle proposed in the theory of pangenesis that is shed by a somatic cell and contains all the information necessary to reproduce that cell type (as in an offspring) b : a reproductive bud produced by freshwater and some marine sponges that consists of a usually hardened aggregate of cells