ciliate

American  

[sil-ee-it, -eyt] / ˈsɪl i ɪt, -ˌeɪt /

noun

1. Also called ciliophoran.  any protozoan of the phylum Ciliophora (or in some classification schemes, class Ciliata), as those of the genera Paramecium, Tetrahymena, Stentor, and Vorticella, having cilia on part or all of the surface.

---

adjective

1. Also ciliated having cilia.

2. belonging or pertaining to the phylum Ciliophora.

ciliate British  

/ ˈsɪlɪɪt, -eɪt /

adjective

1. Also: ciliated.  possessing or relating to cilia

   a ciliate epithelium

2. of or relating to protozoans of the phylum Ciliophora , which have an outer layer of cilia

---

noun

1. a protozoan of the phylum Ciliophora

Other Word Forms

• ciliately adverb
• ciliation noun
• multiciliate adjective
• multiciliated adjective
• nonciliate adjective
• nonciliated adjective
• unciliated adjective

Etymology

Origin of ciliate

1785–95; < New Latin ciliātus, equivalent to cili ( a ) cilia + -ātus -ate ¹

Example Sentences

Instead of studying cells in a lab dish, the scientists used advanced computer modeling to analyze how molecular networks inside ciliate and mammalian cells respond to different patterns of stimulation.

From Science Daily

“To the best of our knowledge, ciliates have never been observed in association with urchin diseases elsewhere,” Hewson and his colleagues wrote in a Science Advances paper published last year.

From Science Magazine

The probable culprit is a disease-causing ciliate parasite that brings with it a fast death - perhaps the same one that has wreaked havoc on sea urchin populations in the Caribbean.

From Reuters

Though most ciliates don’t cause disease, this kind has been linked with other aquatic outbreaks, making it a prime suspect, Hewson said.

From Seattle Times

It found that microbes called ciliates can survive and thrive on a virus-only diet.

From Science Magazine