Pro*lif"er*ous (?), a. [L. proles offspring + -ferous.]
1. Bot.
Bearing offspring; -- applied to a flower from within which another is produced, or to a branch or frond from which another rises, or to a plant which is reproduced by buds or gemmae.
2. Zool. (a)
Producing young by budding.
(b)
Producing sexual zooids by budding; -- said of the blastostyle of a hydroid.
(c)
Producing a cluster of branchlets from a larger branch; -- said of corals.
Proliferous cyst Med., a cyst that produces highly-organized or even vascular structures.
Paget.
-- Pro*lif"er*ous*ly, adv.
© Webster 1913.