globigerina

[ gloh-bij-uh-rahy-nuh, -ree- ]

/ gloʊˌbɪdʒ əˈraɪ nə, -ˌri- /

noun, plural glo·big·er·i·nas, glo·big·er·i·nae [gloh-bij-uh-rahy-nee, -ree-] /gloʊˌbɪdʒ əˈraɪ ni, -ˌri-/.

any marine foraminifer of the genus Globigerina, having a calcareous shell, occurring either near the surface of the sea or in the mud at the bottom.

Nearby words

globefish, globeflower, globesity, globetrot, globetrotter, globigerina, globigerina ooze, globin, globish, globoid, globoid cell leukodystrophy

Origin of globigerina

1840–50; < New Latin, equivalent to Latin globi- globe (combining form of globus) + -ger- (stem of gerere to carry) + -ina -ina²

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

Examples from the Web for globigerina

The shells accumulate at the bottom of moderately deep seas to form “Globigerina ooze” and are preserved thus in the chalk.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 1|Various
It is probably a developmental phase of Globigerina, a, Orbulina shell; b, Globigerina shell.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 6|Various
Chalk is well known to consist largely of foraminiferal shells, mostly vitreous, like the north Atlantic globigerina ooze.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 6|Various
It is called Globigerina, and some specimens of chalk consist of little else than Globigerin and granules.
Young Folks' Library, Volume XI (of 20)|Various

It is called Globigerina, and some specimens of chalk consist of little else than Globigerinæ and granules.
The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to Prose, Vol. VI (of X)--Great Britain and Ireland IV|Various

British Dictionary definitions for globigerina

globigerina

/ (ɡləʊˌbɪdʒəˈraɪnə) /

noun plural -nas or -nae (-niː)

any marine protozoan of the genus Globigerina, having a rounded shell with spiny processes: phylum Foraminifera (foraminifers)

globigerina ooze a deposit on the ocean floor consisting of the shells of these protozoans

Word Origin for globigerina

C19: from New Latin, from Latin globus globe + gerere to carry, bear

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