methanogen

M3E1T1H4A1N1O1G2E1N1

noun

Any of various archaebacteria capable of methanogenesis.

OriginAncient Greek γένος (génos) ← Proto-Hellenic *génos ← Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os →
Scrabble 16
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounmethanogen (plural methanogens)

plural methanogens

  1. Any of various archaebacteria capable of methanogenesis.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*médʰu
  2. Proto-Hellenic*métʰu
  3. Ancient Greekμέθυ (méthu)
  4. Proto-Indo-European*swel-der.?
  5. Ancient Greekῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)
  6. GermanMethy
  7. Englishmethyl
  8. Englishmethane
  9. Proto-Indo-European*ǵenh₁-
  10. Proto-Indo-European*ǵénh₁os
  11. Proto-Hellenic*génos
  12. Ancient Greekγένος (génos)
  13. Englishmethanogen

From methane + -o- + -gen.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French méthanogène
  • méthanogènearchaebacterium capable of methanogenesis
Irish meatánaigin
  • meatánaiginarchaebacterium capable of methanogenesis
Italian metanogeno
  • metanogenoarchaebacterium capable of methanogenesis
Spanish metanógeno
  • metanógenoarchaebacterium capable of methanogenesis
Cite this entry
APA

methanogen. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/methanogen

MLA

“methanogen.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/methanogen. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “methanogen,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/methanogen.

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