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foraminifer

American  
[fawr-uh-min-uh-fer, for-] / ˌfɔr əˈmɪn ə fər, ˌfɒr- /

noun

foraminifers, plural foraminifera plural
  1. 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.


foraminifer British  
/ ˌfɒrəˈmɪnɪfə, fɒˌræmɪˈnɪfərəl /

noun

  1. Often shortened to: foram.  any marine protozoan of the phylum Foraminifera , having a shell with numerous openings through which cytoplasmic processes protrude See also globigerina nummulite

"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

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Etymology

Origin of foraminifer

1835–45; < New Latin Foraminifera, equivalent to Latin forāmin-, stem of forāmen foramen + -ifera; see -i-, -fer

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Now, an international group of researchers have discovered a previously unknown species of large foraminifer, shedding new light on the ecological evolution and biodiversity of coral reefs in the Ryukyu Islands.

From Science Daily Sep. 19, 2023

The Laurentian rocks have yielded only one fossil—a large foraminifer named Eozoon Canadense.

From Geology by Geikie, James

In these rocks the nucleus of every minute spherule is seen, under the microscope, to consist of a small rhizopod or foraminifer.

From The Student's Elements of Geology by Lyell, Charles, Sir

Sir William Dawson’s name is especially associated with the Eozoon canadense, which in 1864 he described as an organism having the structure of a foraminifer.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 10 "David, St" to "Demidov" by Various

Beds of gneiss and quartzite, with interstratified limestones, in one of which, 1000 feet thick, occurs a foraminifer, Eozoon Canadense, the oldest known fossil.

From The Student's Elements of Geology by Lyell, Charles, Sir

The method examines the chemistry of ancient foraminifera, microscopic marine organisms whose remains are preserved in seafloor sediments.

From Science Daily Jul. 16, 2026

The researchers looked at carbon and oxygen isotopes in multiple species of planktonic and benthic foraminifera.

From Science Daily Dec. 4, 2024

Nitrogen isotopes preserved within fossil foraminifera enabled the scientists to track past changes in column denitrification in the water.

From Science Daily Feb. 15, 2024

He added foraminifera to these samples and every few days measured how the oxygen levels changed at different depths.

From Science Daily Dec. 11, 2023

With the exception of foraminifera which have been found in the boulder clay of widely separated regions, fossils are practically unknown; but in some maritime districts marine shells have been incorporated with the clay.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 3 "Borgia, Lucrezia" to "Bradford, John" by Various

The study focuses on three major groups of calcifying plankton: coccolithophores, foraminifers, and pteropods.

From Science Daily Feb. 8, 2026

To the west its waters were clear and on its floor the crumbled remains of foraminifers gathered in heavy accumulations of calcareous ooze,— the white chalk of France and England.

From The Elements of Geology by Norton, William Harmon

Beneath the reef are thick beds of limestone, composed largely of the remains of foraminifers, which cover the lavas and fragraental materials of the old submarine volcano.

From The Elements of Geology by Norton, William Harmon

At one moment he has to deal with the bones of some large mammal scattered through a deposit of superficial gravel, at another time with the minute foraminifers and ostracods of an upraised sea-bottom.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 6 "Geodesy" to "Geometry" by Various

Certain small foraminifers, for example, met with in some of the oldest formations, do not seem to differ from species which are still living.

From Geology by Geikie, James

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