Protozoa
/ˌproʊtəˈzoʊə/noun
Microscopic single-celled organisms, especially those once classified as animal-like protists.
Did you know?The word was coined in the early 1800s as a scientific label for organisms thought to be the most primitive animal-like life forms, combining Greek roots for “first” and “animal.”
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
prôtos
“first”
Ancient Greek
Greek
zôion
“animal, living creature”
Early 19th Century
New Latin
Protozoa
“scientific plural term for the earliest or simplest animal-like organisms”
19th Century
English
protozoa
“microscopic single-celled animal-like organisms”
Modern English
English
protozoa
“a broad informal term for certain single-celled eukaryotes, though the scientific classification has changed”
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