epizoan
- noun
- /ˌɛpɪˈzoʊən/
- Specialized
:
epizoón
- The tick is a common epizoan that feeds on the blood of mammals.
Examples
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Some epizoans, such as lice and fleas, can transmit diseases to their hosts.
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Marine biologists studied the barnacles as epizoans living on the whale's skin.
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The epizoan attached itself to the fish's skin.
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Many epizoans can affect the health of their host.
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Marine biologists studied the barnacles as epizoans living on the whale's skin.
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Some epizoans, such as lice and fleas, can transmit diseases to their hosts.
-
The tick is a common epizoan that feeds on the blood of mammals.
Synonyms
111
4.2
A living thing that lives on or inside another living thing and takes food from it
A small creature that lives on the outside of another animal like a flea
An animal that lives outside another animal and feeds on it, like a flea
A small animal like fleas and ticks that lives on another animal and feeds on its blood or skin
An animal that lives on another animal's body and feeds on it, like a flea or tick
Surface Forms
Morphology
epizoan = epi + zoan
Formed from epi- (on) + -zoan (animal); the composition is etymologically regular but relies on classical combining forms that are not obvious to many learners, so only partially transparent.
Etymology
Epizoan comes from the Greek parts epi- 'on' and zoon 'animal', the same zoo root you see in zoo and zoology. So, an epizoan is literally an 'animal on an animal', a creature that lives on the outside of another animal, like lice or ticks.