Phaeoderm
/ˈfiː.oʊ.dɜːrm/noun
A biological term for an organism or structure having dark-colored skin or integument.
Did you know?The combining form phaeo- comes from Greek phaios, meaning dusky, gray, or brown, and appears in scientific names for dark-colored organisms and tissues.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dʰer-
“To split, strip, or flay; a proposed ancestral root connected with the action of removing skin”
Ancient Greek
Greek
phaios
“Dusky, gray, brown, or dark-colored”
Ancient Greek
Greek
derma
“Skin or hide”
19th Century
Scientific Greek
phaeo- + -derm
“A combining formation meaning dusky or dark skin”
Modern English
English
phaeoderm
“An organism or structure characterized by dark pigmentation of the skin or integument”