Skip to main content
pantropical

pantropical

1 8.1
Lives or grows in tropical regions all over the world
  • adjective
  • /pænˈtrɒpɪkəl/
  • Specialized
: pantropical
  • Sixty-three percent of the plants identified maintain a weedy life history, and many are noxious pests that have attained pantropical distributions.

Examples

  • Sand-dune communities are highly xeromorphic, halophytic, rich in endemics, and generally composed of pantropical and pioneer species typical of the Caribbean region (Sauer 1967).

    Academic text (1993)
  • Many species of plants can be found in pantropical regions, thriving in the warm climates of Africa, Asia, and the Americas.

  • The last group, mostly members of pantropical families, has been so widely dispersed in the past that their origin has not been determined.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The weedy herb Bryophyllum pinnatum, native to Madagascar, has become pantropical in distribution.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The new research highlights the pantropical nature of the mangrove forests, which are located along coastlines worldwide.

  • Birds that are classified as pantropical often migrate between tropical areas in different parts of the world.

Synonyms

circumtropical
vspantropical
  • Specialized
1 9.2

Exist in warm regions near the equator all around the world

is the same meaning but in a different word form
pantropic
vspantropical
  • Specialized
9.9

Found in tropical regions all over the world

is the same meaning but uses a longer adjectival form

How Widespread

cosmopolitan
  • Specialized
16 5.5
widespread
232 3.6
pantropical
  • Specialized
1 8.1
regional
410 3.5
local
  • Specialized
23 2.1

Surface Forms

pantropical positive

Morphology

pantropical = tropical (semi-transparent) = pan + tropic + al

The meaning is directly compositional as 'pan-' means all and 'tropical' supplies the regional domain, but the learned prefix may be less familiar to some B1 learners.

Etymology

Pantropical combines the prefix pan- meaning 'all', as in Pan-American, and tropical, which refers to the 'tropics' or 'warm regions' near the equator, so pantropical means found across 'all' tropical regions of the world.