Pan″sper′my (?), n. [Pan- + Gr. � a seed.] (Biol.) (a) The doctrine of the widespread distribution of germs, from which under favorable circumstances bacteria, vibrios, etc., may develop. (b) The doctrine that all organisms must come from living parents; biogenesis; — the opposite of spontaneous generation.
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Webster's Dictionary 1913
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, C. & G. Merriam Co., 1913.