Meanings
- uncountablebiologyThe ability of an organism to avoid observation.
1 more example
Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close[…]above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them. Many insects probably use this strategy, which is a close analogy to crypsis in the visible world—camouflage and other methods for blending into one’s visual background.
2013 May-June, William E. Conner, “An Acoustic Arms Race”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, pages 206–7
Origin
- Ancient Greekκρύψις“hiding, concealment”
- Englishcrypsis
Probably directly from Ancient Greek κρύψις (krúpsis, “hiding, concealment”); compare Latin crypsis. Doublet of krypsis.
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
crypsis. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/crypsis
“crypsis.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/crypsis. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “crypsis,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/crypsis.
Source: crypsis on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.