Affixes

The spermio‑ and spermo‑ forms are irregularly created from the Greek original, and most terms containing them have been replaced by equivalents in spermato‑.

Semen is the male reproductive fluid; in suspension it contains spermatozoa (singular spermatozoon) (Greek zōion, animal), the mature motile male sex cells (the term is often abbreviated to sperm). A spermicide is a substance that kills spermatozoa, used as a contraceptive; the adjective spermatic relates to sperm or semen.

In biology, including human biology, a spermatogonium is a primitive germ cell that gives rise to spermatocytes, which divide into spermatids and mature into spermatozoa through spermiogenesis; the whole process is called spermatogenesis. In botany, a spermatophyte (Greek phuton, a plant) is a plant that bears seeds, including the gymnosperms and angiosperms.

The white waxy substance produced by the sperm whale, spermaceti (Greek kētos, whale), was given that name from the belief that it was whale sperm.