rhizocephalan

British

/ ˌraɪzəʊˈsɛfələn /

noun

any parasitic crustacean of the order Rhizocephala , esp Sacculina carcini , which has a saclike body and sends out absorptive processes into the body of its host, the crab: subclass Cirripedia (barnacles)

"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

adjective

of, relating to, or belonging to the order Rhizocephala

"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

Etymology

Origin of rhizocephalan

C19: from New Latin Rhizocephala (literally: root-headed), from _rhizo- + -cephala from Greek kephalē head

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023