life cycle
Birth-to-death sequence
A life cycle is the series of stages an organism passes through from birth to death—or from one generation to the next.
The term extends to products, technologies, and trends: The product life cycle includes introduction, growth, maturity, and decline.
In biology, life cycles may involve dramatic transformations: egg to larva to adult.
Organism before birth
- larvaImmature feeding stage
- pupaInsect's resting stage
- nymphNature spirit or larva
- juvenileYoung person or animal
fledgling · seedling · sapling · tadpole · caterpillar · chrysalis · adolescent · adult
Progress toward maturity
- maturationProcess of becoming complete
- flourishingProspering vigorously
- thrivingSucceeding vigorously
- proliferationRapid increase in quantity
expansion · budding · blooming · burgeoning · progression · advancement · increase · evolution
Final portion of something
- terminationAct of ending something
- expirationEnd of validity
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- decayGradual organic breakdown
recycling · return · completion · closure · finality · passing · demise · extinction
Gradual functional decline with age
- agingGrowing older over time
- deteriorationProcess of declining quality
- decayGradual organic breakdown
- waningGradually decreasing in intensity
withering · fading · diminishing · regression · atrophy · degeneration · weakening · entropy
Formation of an idea
- gestationCarrying offspring in womb
- deliveryConveyance of goods
- laborStrenuous effort; also childbirth
- newbornInfant just delivered
infant · natal · neonatal · babyhood · emergence · hatching · sprouting · germination
State of being grown
- primeReadying for action
- peakUtmost height attained
- ripenessReady to eat state
- floweringProducing reproductive structures
fruiting · senescence · aging · plateau · stability · reproductive · climax · fullness
Capacity for reproduction
- breedingReproductive cultivation of organisms
- matingReproductive pairing behavior
- fertilizationGamete fusion creating zygote
- pollinationFlower reproductive transfer
spawning · procreation · propagation · incubation · ovulation · gestation · offspring · generation
embryo
Organism before birth
juvenile · fledgling · seedling · sapling · tadpole · caterpillar · chrysalis · adolescent · adult · elder
development
Progress toward maturity
- maturationProcess of becoming complete
- flourishingProspering vigorously
- thrivingSucceeding vigorously
proliferation · expansion · budding · blooming · burgeoning · progression · advancement · increase · evolution · differentiation
ending
Final portion of something
- terminationAct of ending something
- expirationEnd of validity
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
decay · recycling · return · completion · closure · finality · passing · demise · extinction · senescence
senescence
Gradual functional decline with age
- agingGrowing older over time
- deteriorationProcess of declining quality
- decayGradual organic breakdown
waning · withering · fading · diminishing · regression · atrophy · degeneration · weakening · entropy · obsolescence
conception
Formation of an idea
- gestationCarrying offspring in womb
- deliveryConveyance of goods
- laborStrenuous effort; also childbirth
newborn · infant · natal · neonatal · babyhood · emergence · hatching · sprouting · germination · beginning
adulthood
State of being grown
flowering · fruiting · senescence · aging · plateau · stability · reproductive · climax · fullness · completion
fertility
Capacity for reproduction
- breedingReproductive cultivation of organisms
- matingReproductive pairing behavior
- fertilizationGamete fusion creating zygote
pollination · spawning · procreation · propagation · incubation · ovulation · gestation · offspring · generation · heredity
- biologycells, DNA, cell, biology, gene
- ecologyhabitat, ecosystem, balance, niche, food webs
- "life" phraseslifeblood, nightlife, wildlife, lowlife, highlife
- cyclescycles, period, rhythms, oscillations, full circle
- life cyclesbirth, death, growth, metamorphosis, reproduction
- animal cycleshibernation, migration patterns, breeding season, mating season, mating seasons
life cycleinstant
Briefest unit of time
snapshot · point in time · flash · split second · frozen moment