photobiont

pho·to·bi·ont
P3H4O1T1O1B3I1O1N1T1
UK/ˌfəʊ.təʊˈbaɪ.ɒnt/UK/-tə-/US/ˌfoʊ.toʊˈbaɪ.ɑnt/

noun

A photosynthetic symbiont, especially those in symbiosis with fungi in lichen.

OriginEnglish photo- ← Ancient Greek φωτο- (phōto-) ← Proto-Hellenic *pʰáwos →
Scrabble 17
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Meanings

nounphotobiont (plural photobionts)

plural photobionts

  1. biologyA photosynthetic symbiont, especially those in symbiosis with fungi in lichen.

    It has micobiont from Ascomycota and Basidiomycota belonging to kingdom Fungi and photobiont from Trebouxia species.

    2022, Dhanasekaran Dharumadurai, Microbial Symbionts, page 811

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*bʰeh₂-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*bʰéh₂os
  3. Proto-Hellenic*pʰáwos
  4. Ancient Greekφᾰ́ος (phắos)
  5. Ancient Greekφῶς (phôs)
  6. Ancient Greekφωτο- (phōto-)
  7. Englishphoto-
  8. Englishphotobiont

From photo- + -biont.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

German Photobiont
  • PhotobiontTranslations

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with photobiont

symbiontcyanobiontmycobiontphycobiontschizobiont
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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