Meanings
adjectivexylophagous (not comparable)
- not comparableFeeding on wood. (of insects etc.)
Man has many times suffered from his attempts at extermination, and in no way, perhaps, would he suffer more, than by utterly destroying the mischievous teredo, and its active little ally, the xylophagous linmeria.
1841, William Chambers, Robert Chambers, editors, Chambers’ Edinburgh Journal, volume 9, page 247 - not comparableDestructive to wood. (of fungi etc.)
Origin
- Ancient Greekξῠ́λον (xŭ́lon)
- Englishxylo-
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰeh₂g-
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰh₂g-
- Ancient Greekἔφαγον (éphagon)
- Englishxylophagous
From xylo- (“wood”) + -phagous (“eating”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan xilòfag
- xilòfagof insects, etc., feeding on wood
Czech dřevožravý, xylofágní
- dřevožravýof insects, etc., feeding on wood
- xylofágníof insects, etc., feeding on wood
- dřevožravýof fungi, etc., feeding on wood
- xylofágníof fungi, etc., feeding on wood
Finnish ksylofaginen, ksylofaginen
- ksylofaginenof insects, etc., feeding on wood
- ksylofaginenof fungi, etc., feeding on wood
French xylophage, xylophage
- xylophageof insects, etc., feeding on wood
- xylophageof fungi, etc., feeding on wood
German xylophag
- xylophagof insects, etc., feeding on wood
Turkish oduncul
- odunculof insects, etc., feeding on wood
Cite this entry
APA
xylophagous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/xylophagous
MLA
“xylophagous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/xylophagous. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “xylophagous,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/xylophagous.
Source: xylophagous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.