plankton

Etymology

Borrowed from German Plankton, coined by German zoologist and marine biologist Victor Hensen and derived from Ancient Greek πλαγκτός (planktós, “drifter”), from πλάζω (plázō, “I turn aside, wander”).

noun

  1. (uncountable) Organisms, especially small and microscopic ones, that drift in water.
  2. (uncountable) A plankter, any single organism that drifts in water.

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