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foraminifer

[fawr-uh-min-uh-fer, for-]
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noun, plural for·a·min·i·fers, fo·ram·i·nif·er·a [fuh-ram-uh-nif-er-uh] /fəˌræm əˈnɪf ər ə/.

any chiefly marine protozoan of the sarcodinian order Foraminifera, typically having a linear, spiral, or concentric shell perforated by small holes or pores through which pseudopodia extend.

Nearby words

  1. foramen of vena cava,
  2. foramen spinosum,
  3. foramina,
  4. foraminal node,
  5. foraminate,
  6. foraminifera,
  7. foraminiferan,
  8. forasmuch as,
  9. forasmuchas,
  10. foray

Origin of foraminifer

1835–45; < New Latin Foraminifera, equivalent to Latin forāmin-, stem of forāmen foramen + -ifera; see -i-, -fer
Also called fo·ram·i·nif·er·an [fuh-ram-uh-nif-er-uh n] /fəˌræm əˈnɪf ər ən/, foram.
Related formsfo·ram·i·nif·er·al, fo·ram·i·nif·er·ous, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for foraminifer

  • The foraminifer multiplies by fission, or by a process of budding.

    The Sea Shore|William S. Furneaux
British Dictionary definitions for foraminifer

foraminifer

noun

any marine protozoan of the phylum Foraminifera, having a shell with numerous openings through which cytoplasmic processes protrudeOften shortened to: foram See also globigerina, nummulite
Derived Formsforaminiferal (fɒˌræmɪˈnɪfərəl) or foraminiferous, adjective

Word Origin for foraminifer

C19: from New Latin, from foramen + -fer
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