semiparasitic

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adjective

Describing a plant that, although it uses photosynthesis, obtains some nutrition from other plants.

“The typhoid bacillus and cholera bacterium are semiparasitic.”

OriginEnglish parasitic ← Middle French parasite ← Latin parasītus →
Scrabble 19
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Meanings

adjectivesemiparasitic (not comparable)
  1. not comparablebiologyDescribing a plant that, although it uses photosynthesis, obtains some nutrition from other plants.
  2. not comparablebiologyHaving moderate infectiousness for living tissue.

    The typhoid bacillus and cholera bacterium are semiparasitic.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sem-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*sēmi
  3. Latinsēmi-
  4. Englishsemi-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*per-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*preh₂-
  7. Proto-Hellenic*pərai
  8. Ancient Greekπᾰρᾰ́ (părắ)
  9. Ancient Greekσῖτος (sîtos)
  10. Ancient Greekπαράσιτος (parásitos)
  11. Latinparasītus
  12. Middle Frenchparasite
  13. Englishparasite
  14. Englishparasitic
  15. Englishsemiparasitic

From semi- + parasitic.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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