exit. Sponges produce eggs and spermatozoa, and the egg when fertilized undergoes segmentation to
form a ciliated embryo.
Spongida
(||Spon"gi*da) n. pl. [NL.] Spongiæ.
Spongiform
(Spon"gi*form) a. Resembling a sponge; soft and porous; porous.
Spongilla
(||Spon*gil"la) n. [NL., dim. of spongia a sponge.] (Zoöl.) A genus of siliceous spongea
found in fresh water.
Spongin
(Spon"gin) n. (Physiol. Chem.) The chemical basis of sponge tissue, a nitrogenous, hornlike
substance which on decomposition with sulphuric acid yields leucin and glycocoll.
Sponginess
(Spon"gi*ness) n. The quality or state of being spongy. Dr. H. More.
Sponging
(Spon"ging) a. & n. from Sponge, v.
Sponging house (Eng. Law),
a bailiff's or other house in which debtors are put before being taken to
jail, or until they compromise with their creditors. At these houses extortionate charges are commonly
made for food, lodging, etc.
Spongiole
(Spon"gi*ole) n. [L. spongiola a rose gall, small roots, dim. of spongia: cf. F. spongiole.]
(Bot.) A supposed spongelike expansion of the tip of a rootlet for absorbing water; — called also spongelet.
Spongiolite
(Spon"gi*o*lite) n. [Gr. sponge + -lite.] (Paleon.) One of the microsporic siliceous spicules
which occur abundantly in the texture of sponges, and are sometimes found fossil, as in flints.
Spongiopilin
(Spon`gi*o*pi"lin) n. [Gr. dim. of a sponge + felt.] (Med.) A kind of cloth interwoven with
small pieces of sponge and rendered waterproof on one side by a covering of rubber. When moistend
with hot water it is used as a poultice.