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🥀 To whip 🦠 A single-celled organism 🧬 Whip-like
flagellate

flagellate

9.9
Having whip-like tails used to move
  • adjective
  • /fləˈdʒɛlɪt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : flagelado
  • Some protists are flagellate, using whip-like appendages for movement.

Examples

  • The flagellate structure of certain bacteria enables them to swim efficiently.

  • The flagellate organism moved swiftly through the water.

  • Under the microscope, the flagellate cells were easy to identify by their distinctive tails.

  • Many flagellate species are found in freshwater environments.

  • Certain flagellate organisms have long, whip-like tails that aid in their movement through water.

  • The flagellate form of the microbe allows it to swim towards light sources in its environment.

  • In aquatic ecosystems, flagellate algae play a crucial role in the food web by serving as a primary food source.

Synonyms

whiplike
vsflagellate
1 7.3

Long, thin, and flexible like a whip

applies more to biological structures than to any long thin object
flagellated
vsflagellate
  • Specialized
8.6

Having one or more long thin tails that help the cell move

describes resemblance rather than actual possession of such appendages
lash-like
vsflagellate
  • Specialized
7.5

Thin, flexible part that moves like a whip

applies more narrowly to structures like these rather than to any shape
flagellar
vsflagellate
  • Specialized
8.9

Relating to a long thin tail that cells use to move

emphasizes resemblance or possession rather than mere relation

Compounds

flagellate protozoan
  • Specialized
9.2

A single-cell creature that moves with tail-like parts and can cause disease in people

plantlike flagellate
  • Specialized
9.9

A one-celled water living thing that makes food from light and moves with a tail

Surface Forms

flagellate positive

Morphology

flagellate = flagellum (transparent) = flagellum + ate

Adjective formed by adding the productive suffix '-ate' to 'flagellum' to mean 'having or resembling a whip', a straightforward biological formation.

Etymology

Flagellate as an adjective comes from the Latin flagellum meaning 'whip', and it describes something that is 'whip-like' or has a whip, for example a tail that looks and moves like a 'whip'.