pseudopod
1
9.9
- noun
- /ˈsuːdəˌpɒd/
- Specialized
- In Dictyostelium, the deformations result in localized regions of protrusion called pseudopods.
- extending pseudopods
Examples
-
One of the committee's multispecies members pointed with its pseudopod to the spreadsheet displayed on a holoscreen.
Fiction book (1999) -
The captain ran a pseudopod over the surface of the disk, wondering if the fine spiral grooves cut into it served any function.
Fiction book (2000) -
Ch'klorb ran a pseudopod across another section of the etched metal.
Fiction book (2000) -
After a couple of minutes, I feel Ship's long retrieval pseudopod slurp me in.
Fiction book (2002) -
The online version of this article includes videos of chemotaxing cells that reveal pseudopods coming and going stochastically.
Academic text (2012) -
Ch'klorb extended a pseudopod and petted the paucimorph's head fondly.
Fiction book (2000) -
Most of the time, social amoebas do what most people think amoebas do: they move through soil by extending their pseudopods, or amorphous "feet" of protoplasm, and engulf prey along the way.
Academic text (2007) -
The single-celled organism moved by extending a pseudopod to reach its food.
-
She watched as the amoeba formed a pseudopod to engulf a small particle.
-
In its search for nutrients, the organism protruded a pseudopod into the water.
Synonyms
A temporary part of a single cell that sticks out to move or eat
Surface Forms
Morphology
pseudopod = pod (semi-transparent) = pseudo + pod
The word is built from the scientific prefix 'pseudo-' meaning 'false' and 'pod' meaning 'foot', but the biological sense is specialized rather than fully self-evident for learners.
Etymology
Pseudopod comes from the Greek parts pseudo- meaning 'false' and pod meaning 'foot', so it literally means 'false foot'. Think of it as a temporary 'foot' a cell puts out to move or to grab food, which is why we call that extension a pseudopod.