plankton
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
- planktonic adjective
Etymology
Origin of plankton
1890–95; < German, special use of neuter of Greek planktós drifting, equivalent to plang-, variant stem of plázesthai to drift, roam, wander + -tos verbid suffix
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.
Sometimes for a whole day they talked in sea lion grunts or frigate bird squawks or plankton wiggles.
From Literature
When climate models leave out calcifying plankton, they may miss key steps in the global carbon cycle.
From Science Daily
When they open them, a seascape galaxy of stars appears -- the bluish-white flashes of creatures from plankton and jellyfish to shrimp and fish responding to the sub lights.
From Barron's
The approach is also highly efficient, since it removes almost all plankton from the water.
From Science Daily
These nutrients stimulate the growth of plankton, microscopic organisms that absorb carbon dioxide through photosynthesis.
From Science Daily
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
