seminal

See also: séminal

English

Etymology

From Middle English seminal, semynal, from Old French seminal, seminale, from Latin sēminālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɛmɪnəl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛmɪnəl

Adjective

seminal (comparative more seminal, superlative most seminal)

1. Of or relating to seed or semen.
   • 1792, George Louis Le Clerc, Barr's Buffon. Buffon's Natural History, page 126:

     During the summer, he studied calmars at Lisbon, but found no appearance of any roe, nor any reservoir which appeared to be destined for the reception of the seminal liquor; and it was in the middle of December, that he began to discern the first traces of a new vessel replete with a milty juice.

2. Creative or having the power to originate.
3. Highly influential, especially in some original way, and providing a basis for future development or research.

   Synonyms: influential, pioneering

   "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions" was a seminal work in the modern philosophy of science.

   • 1827, Julius Hare, Augustus William Hare, Guesses at Truth:

     The idea of God is, beyond all question or comparison, the one great seminal principle.

   • 2000, Walter Nicholson, Intermediate microeconomics and its application:

     For a seminal contribution to the economics of fertility, ....

Synonyms

• (relating to seed): germinal
• (creative): innovative, primary
• (highly influential): influential, innovative, formative

Derived terms

• human seminal plasma protein hypersensitivity
• nonseminal
• seminal fluid
• seminality
• seminally
• seminal vesicle

 

Translations

of or relating to seed or semen

• Bulgarian: семенен (semenen)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 種子的／种子的 (zh) (zhǒngzi de), 精液的 (zh) (jīngyè de)

• Dutch: zaad- (nl)
• Finnish: siemen- (fi)
• French: séminal (fr)
• Georgian: სათესლე (satesle)
• German: Saat- (de), Samen-, spermatisch
• Italian: seminale (it)
• Latin: seminalis
• Lithuanian: sėklinis
• Portuguese: seminal
• Russian: семенно́й (ru) (semennój)
• Scottish Gaelic: sìolach
• Slovene: seménski, seminálen
• Spanish: seminal (es)
• Turkish: dölsel, seminal (tr)

creative or having the power to originate

• Bulgarian: оплождащ (bg) (oploždašt)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 創造性的／创造性的 (zh) (chuàngzàoxìng de)

• Dutch: creatief (nl), vruchtbaar (nl)
• French: créatif (fr), reproductif (fr), fondateur (fr), fécond (fr)
• German: fruchtbar (de), produktiv (de)
• Latin: seminalis
• Portuguese: seminal
• Russian: плодови́тый (ru) (plodovítyj)
• Spanish: germinal (es)
• Turkish: kreatif (tr), yaratıcı (tr)

highly influential

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 影響深遠的／影响深远的 (yǐngxiǎn shēnyuǎn de)

• Dutch: invloedrijk (nl), belangrijk (nl), baanbrekend (nl)
• Finnish: uraauurtava (fi), mullistava (fi)
• French: influent (fr), important (fr), essentiel (fr)
• German: grundlegend (de), bahnbrechend (de), zukunftsträchtig, ur- (de), wegweisend (de)
• Italian: seminale (it)
• Portuguese: seminal
• Russian: основополага́ющий (ru) (osnovopolagájuščij)
• Serbo-Croatian: утицајан m (uticajan), плодоносан m (plodonosan)
• Spanish: influyente (es)
• Swedish: nyskapande (sv), inflytelserik (sv)
• Turkish: çığır açıcı

Noun

seminal (plural seminals)

1. (obsolete) A seed.
   • 1650, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica: […], 2nd edition, London: […] A[braham] Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, […], →OCLC:

     the seminals of spiders and scorpions

Anagrams

• Elamins, Malines, Melians, isleman, menials, salmine

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin sēminālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [sə.miˈnal]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [se.miˈnal]

Adjective

seminal m or f (masculine and feminine plural seminals)

1. seminal

Derived terms

• vesícula seminal

Further reading

• “seminal” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “seminal”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “seminal” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “seminal” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Portuguese

Etymology

From Latin sēminālis.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /se.miˈnaw/ [se.miˈnaʊ̯]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /sɨ.miˈnal/ [sɨ.miˈnaɫ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /sɨ.miˈnal/ [sɨ.miˈnaɫ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /sɨ.miˈna.li/

• Rhymes: -al, -aw
• Hyphenation: se‧mi‧nal

Adjective

seminal m or f (plural seminais)

1. (botany) seminal (relating to seeds)
2. (anatomy) seminal (relating to semen)
3. seminal; creative; inventive

   Synonyms: criativo, inventivo, fértil

4. seminal (highly influential)

Related terms

• sêmen
• semente

Further reading

• “seminal” in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa.

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French séminal, from Latin seminalis.

Adjective

seminal m or n (feminine singular seminală, masculine plural seminali, feminine and neuter plural seminale)

1. seminal

Declension

Declension of seminal

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	seminal		seminală	seminali	seminale
	definite	seminalul		seminala	seminalii	seminalele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	seminal		seminale	seminali	seminale
	definite	seminalului		seminalei	seminalilor	seminalelor

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin sēminālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /semiˈnal/ [se.miˈnal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: se‧mi‧nal

Adjective

seminal m or f (masculine and feminine plural seminales)

1. (botany) seminal (relating to seeds)
2. (anatomy) seminal (relating to semen)
3. seminal; creative; inventive
4. seminal (highly influential)

Derived terms

• vesícula seminal

 

Related terms

• semen
• semilla

 

Further reading

• “seminal”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014