coprophagous

[kuh-prof-uh-guh s]

adjective

feeding on dung, as certain beetles.

Origin of coprophagous

First recorded in 1820–30; copro- + -phagous

Related formscop·ro·pha·gi·a

[kop-ruh-fey-jee-uh, -juh] /ˌkɒp rəˈfeɪ dʒi ə, -dʒə/, nouncop·roph·a·gist

[kuh-prof-uh-jist] /kəˈprɒf ə dʒɪst/, nouncop·roph·a·gy, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for coprophagia

Historical Examples of coprophagia

We regard them as almost insane, fortified in that belief by the undoubted fact that coprophagia is not uncommon among the insane.
Studies in the Psychology of Sex, Volume 5 (of 6)
Havelock Ellis

British Dictionary definitions for coprophagia

coprophagous

adjective

(esp of certain beetles) feeding on dung

Derived Formscoprophagy, noun

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

Word Origin and History for coprophagia

1906, in Havelock Ellis, Latinized from coprophagy (q.v.).