Polyphagous
/ˌpɒliˈfeɪɡəs/noun
Feeding on many kinds of food; having a varied diet, especially in biology.
Did you know?Polyphagous comes from Greek roots once used for eating broadly and greedily, and in biology it became the precise scientific term for species that can consume many different foods.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bʰeh₂gʷ-
“to eat, devour”
Ancient Greek
Greek
phagein
“to eat”
Ancient Greek
Greek
poly-
“many”
Late Greek
Greek
polyphagos
“eating many things; voracious”
19th Century
English
polyphagous
“feeding on many kinds of food, especially in zoological and botanical description”
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