sporozoite

[ spawr-uh-zoh-ahyt, spohr- ]

/ ˌspɔr əˈzoʊ aɪt, ˌspoʊr- /

Save This Word!

noun

one of the minute, active bodies into which the spore of certain Sporozoa divides, each developing into an adult individual.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of sporozoite

First recorded in 1885–90; Sporozo(a) + -ite¹

Words nearby sporozoite

sporopollenin, sporotrichosis, -sporous, Sporozoa, sporozoan, sporozoite, sporran, sport, sporter, sport fish, sportfisherman

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use sporozoite in a sentence

The antibody evaluated in the clinical trial attaches to a protein on the surface of sporozoites — the form of the malaria parasite that enters the body after an infected mosquito bites — and stops the parasites from infecting the liver.
A shot of immune proteins may protect against malaria for months|Aimee Cunningham|August 3, 2022|Science News
The sporoplasm, representing the sporozoite, is always single.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 3|Various

British Dictionary definitions for sporozoite

sporozoite

/ (ˌspɔːrəˈzəʊaɪt, ˌspɒ-) /

noun

any of numerous small mobile usually infective individuals produced in sporozoans by sporogony

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

Scientific definitions for sporozoite

sporozoite

[ spôr′ə-zō′īt′ ]

Any of the minute, undeveloped apicomplexans produced by multiple fission of a zygote or spore, especially at the stage just before infection of a new host cell.