paramecium

Thân thiện

A student observes a paramecium under a microscope.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A single-celled freshwater organism: A paramecium is a microscopic, slipper-shaped protozoan that moves by means of cilia (tiny hair-like structures). It is commonly studied in biology as a representative of the ciliate group.

Usage

• The word "paramecium" is used as a countable noun to refer to an individual organism or to the genus as a whole. It is a scientific term but is common in educational contexts.

Examples

• Noun:
  • We observed a paramecium under the microscope in biology class.
  • Paramecia are often found in stagnant pond water.
  • The paramecium moved quickly across the slide.

Advanced Usage

• "Paramecium aurelia" / "Paramecium caudatum": These are specific species names within the genus . The genus name is italicized, and the species name is not capitalized.
  • The experiment compared the behavior of Paramecium caudatum and Paramecium aurelia.

Variants and Related Words

• Paramecia (n): The common plural form of "paramecium."

  • The water sample was teeming with paramecia.

• Ciliate (n): The broader biological group to which paramecia belong, characterized by the presence of cilia.

  • Paramecium is a well-known example of a ciliate.

Synonyms

• Protozoan: A general term for a single-celled, eukaryotic organism, which includes paramecia.
• Ciliate: Specifically refers to protozoans that move using cilia.

Notes

• There are no specific idioms or phrasal verbs associated with this scientific term. Its usage is almost exclusively literal and academic.

Học thuật

Noun

1. any member of the genus Paramecium

Từ đồng nghĩa

• paramecia