cryptophyte

[ krip-tuh-fahyt ]

/ ˈkrɪp təˌfaɪt /

noun

Botany. a plant that forms its reproductive structures, as corms or bulbs, underground or underwater.

Nearby words

cryptometer, cryptomonad, cryptonym, cryptonymous, cryptophthalmia, cryptophyte, cryptopodia, cryptoporticus, cryptorchid, cryptorchidectomy, cryptorchidism

Origin of cryptophyte

First recorded in 1900–05; crypto- + -phyte

Related forms

cryp·to·phyt·ic

[krip-tuh-fit-ik] /ˌkrɪp təˈfɪt ɪk/, adjective

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

British Dictionary definitions for cryptophyte

cryptophyte

/ (ˈkrɪptəˌfaɪt) /

noun

any perennial plant that bears its buds below the soil or water surface

Derived Forms

cryptophytic (ˌkrɪptəˈfɪtɪk), adjective

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