Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

periphyton

[puh-rif-i-ton]
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.com
noun Ecology.
  1. the community of tiny organisms, as protozoans, hydras, insect larvae, and snails, that lives on the surfaces of rooted aquatic plants.

Origin of periphyton

1940–45; probably peri- + Greek phŷton plant, -phyte, on the model of plankton
Related formsper·i·phyt·ic [per-uh-fit-ik] /ˌpɛr əˈfɪt ɪk/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for periphyton

periphyton

noun
  1. aquatic organisms, such as certain algae, that live attached to rocks or other surfaces

Word Origin

C20: from Greek, from peri- + phutos, from phuein to grow
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012