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Sporo- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “spore.” Spore can have a variety of meanings, but in biology, it is used to refer to small organisms such as seeds or germ cells.

Sporo- ultimately comes from the Greek ����ǰ�á, meaning “sowing” and “seed.” Sporadic, meaning “occasional,” comes from the related Greek ����ǰ����徱��ó��. Find out what sporadic has to do with seeds at our entry.

What are variants of sporo-?

When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, sporo- becomes spor-, as in sporangium.

When combined with words or word elements of Latin origin, sporo- becomes spori–, as in sporiferous. When used at the end of a word, as a suffix, sporo- becomes -spore, as in teliospore.

A related adjectival form is -sporous, which means “having spores” or “full of spores.”

Want to know more? Read our �������t¶��s That Use articles for spor-, spori-, -spore, and -sporous.

An example of a term from biology that features sporo- is sporophyll, “a modified leaf that bears sporangia,” the case or sac in which spores are produced.

The first portion of the word sporo- means “spore,” as we have seen. The -phyll portion of the word may also seem familiar; it means “leaf,” from Greek phýllon. Sporophyll literally translates to “spore leaf.”

What are some words that use the combining form sporo-?

• sporocarp
• sporocyst
• sporocyte
• sporophore
• sporophyte
• sporozoan (using the equivalent form of sporo- in Latin)

What are some other forms that sporo- may be commonly confused with?

• spermo-
• sphero-
• spiro-
• spleno-
• spongio-

The combining form -cyte means “cell.” With this in mind, what part of a plant like liverwort is known as a sporocyte?