protozoan

pro·to·zo·an

noun

pl. -·zo′ans or -·zo′a

any of a subkingdom (Protozoa) of microscopic animals made up of a single cell or a group of more or less identical cells and living in water or as parasites, including ciliates, flagellates, rhizopods, and sporozoans

sometimes pro·to·zo′on·

noun

pl. -·zo′ons or -·zo′a

Origin of protozoan

from Modern Latin Protozoa, name of the subkingdom (see proto- and -zoa) + -an

of the protozoans

often pro·to·zo′ic or pro·to·zo′al

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"Protozoan." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan.

APA Style

Protozoan. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan

protozoan

also pro·to·zo·on

noun

pl. pro·to·zo·ans, or pro·to·zo·a also pro·to·zo·ons

Any of numerous chiefly single-celled eukaryotic organisms, most of which move about freely and ingest food, including the amoebas, ciliates, flagellates, and apicomplexans. Protozoans along with certain algae, oomycetes, and some other groups make up the protists.

Origin of protozoan

From New Latin Prōtozōa former subkingdom name proto- -zōa pl. of -zōon -zoon

Related Forms:

pro′to·zo′an pro′to·zo′al pro′to·zo′ic
adjective

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"Protozoan." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan.

APA Style

Protozoan. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan

Plural protozoans

Any of a large group of one-celled organisms (called protists) that live in water or as parasites. Many protozoans move about by means of appendages known as cilia or flagella. Protozoans include the amoebas, flagellates, foraminiferans, and ciliates. Their traditional classification as the subkingdom Protozoa is still used for convenience, but it is now known that protozoans represent several evolutionarily distinct groups.

See more at protist

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"Protozoan." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan.

APA Style

Protozoan. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan

Noun

(plural protozoa)

(cytology) Any of the diverse group of eukaryotes, of the phylum Protozoa, that are primarily unicellular, existing singly or aggregating into colonies, are usually nonphotosynthetic, and are often classified further into phyla according to their capacity for and means of motility, as by pseudopods, flagella, or cilia.

Adjective

(not comparable)

Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a protozoan.

Origin

From New Latin Protozoa +"Ž -an

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"Protozoan." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan.

APA Style

Protozoan. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan

protozoan - Medical Definition

also protozoon (-ŏn′)

pl. protozoans or protozoa (-zō′ə) also protozoons

Related Forms:

pro′to·zo′an pro′to·zo′al pro′to·zo′ic
adj.

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"Protozoan." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan.

APA Style

Protozoan. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Protozoan

protozoan

protozoan

protozoan - Medical Definition

Sentence Examples

WORDS NEAR protozoan IN THE DICTIONARY

protozoan

protozoan

protozoan - Medical Definition

Sentence Examples

WORDS NEAR protozoan IN THE DICTIONARY

Join YourDictionary today