motile
1
8.6
- adjective
- /ˈmoʊtaɪl/
- Specialized
:
móvil
- Bacterial motion differs from Brownian motion, and motile bacteria are easily detected.
- motile sperm
- motile cell
- progressively motile
It's pro fertile and in males can make for more sperm production or more motile sperm.
- It's pro fertile and in males can make for more sperm production or more motile sperm.
Examples
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Plants, unlike animals, don't have an army of motile immune cells capable of rushing to infected tissue to repel invasion.
Blog text (1) -
Fertilization occurs when the motile sperm swim down the necks of the archegonia and unite with the egg, forming the diploid zygote.
Academic text (2002) -
And what good would it be to have a motile sensory cell?
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If it's high and the sperm is motile, you're a good candidate.
Fiction book (2001) -
Vibrio vulnificus is a motile, halophilic, rod-shaped gram-negative pathogen that lives in estuarine environments (1).
Academic text (2015) -
In the aquarium, the motile fish darted around, showcasing their agility.
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The scientist observed that motile spores could swim towards nutrients in the water.
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When examined under a microscope, the motile microorganisms displayed fascinating patterns of movement.
Antonyms
How Motile
- Specialized
1
8.6
14
4.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
motile = move (transparent) = mot + ile
The adjective is formed from the movement root (mot-) plus the suffix -ile 'capable of'; a learner who knows 'move' or 'motion' can reasonably infer the meaning.
Etymology
Motile comes from the Latin root mot- meaning 'to move', the same root you see in move, motion, and motor. So when cells or tiny organisms are motile, they are 'able to move' by themselves.