gonyaulax

G2O1N1Y4A1U1L1A1X8

noun

An alga of the genus Gonyaulax.

Scrabble 20

Meanings

noun
  1. An alga of the genus Gonyaulax.

    Oval, strongly pigmented cells with a gonyaulax-like girdle displacement.

    2003, Monographs on Oceanographic Methodology, page 409
    2 more examples

    Recently, a gonyaulax toxin was purified from an axenic culture of the alga, Gonyaulax catanella, and this toxin has been shown to be chemically identical with saxitoxin (Schantz et al., 1966).

    1974, Harold Judson Humm, Bioactive compounds from the sea, page 116

    Most shellfish lose their toxins almost completely within four to six weeks after a gonyaulax outbreak.

    2011, Charlie White, Living off the Sea

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekγόνυ“knee”
  2. Englishgonyaulax

Ancient Greek γόνυ (gónu, “knee”) + αὖλαξ (aûlax, “furrow”)

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

gonyaulax. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gonyaulax

MLA

“gonyaulax.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gonyaulax. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “gonyaulax,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gonyaulax.

Source: gonyaulax on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.