polyphyletic
1
9.9
- adjective
- /ˌpɒlɪfaɪˈlɛtɪk/
- Specialized
- Whittaker's functional plant kingdom was an admittedly polyphyletic group of land plants, brown algae, and red algae.
Examples
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Similarly, although most textbook authors have abandoned the polyphyletic kingdom Protista, they continue to devote a chapter to "protists."
Academic text (2012) -
Indeed, many traditionally recognized spiny-finned fish groups are shown to be polyphyletic (figure 3).
Academic text (2010) -
Asterisks indicate taxonomic groups that appear to be polyphyletic. Open and closed circles represent perciform and gasterosteiform taxa, respectively.
Academic text (2010) -
At present, there is clear evidence for fusion of cellular genomes for only one of their five kingdoms, the so-called Protoctista, which no serious biologists accept as a sensible group because it is undoubtedly polyphyletic.
Academic text (2003) -
Their so-called phylum Archaeprotista is polyphyletic: Archamoebae and metamonad flagellates independently lost mitochondria and are no closer phylogenetically than animals and plants.
Academic text (2003) -
Some scientists argue that the traditional classification of amphibians is polyphyletic because it includes species from multiple evolutionary lineages.
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The international conference highlighted several cases of polyphyletic groups in various taxonomies, emphasizing their evolutionary significance.
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Research has shown that certain plant families are polyphyletic, meaning they have evolved from multiple ancestral species rather than a single origin.
Synonyms
1
9.9
From a different species or source than the usual one
1
9.4
Having a different origin or structure from something else
Developed from several different sources
Parts that are different in form and evolved separately, like butterfly and bird wings
Antonyms
How Related
- Specialized
1
9.4
- Specialized
1
9.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
polyphyletic = phyletic (opaque) = poly + phylet + ic
The prefix poly- is clear, but the base phyletic is a technical term that most B1 learners would not know well enough to recover the meaning.
Etymology
Polyphyletic comes from Greek parts poly- meaning 'many', as in polygon, and phylē meaning 'tribe' or 'line'. In biology, that image helps: a polyphyletic group has species from several different ancestors instead of a single common ancestor.