germinal

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun seventh month of the Revolutionary calendar (March and April); the month of buds
  2. adjective containing seeds of later development

Etymology

From Middle French germe, from Latin germen (“bud, seed, embryo”). Doublet of germen. From earlier *genmen via dissimilation, from Proto-Italic *genamen, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁mn̥ (“offspring”, “seed”), from the root *ǵenh₁- (“to beget”, “to give birth”). Compare with genimen.

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