Zooplankton
/ˌzoʊ.oʊˈplæŋk.tən/noun
Plankton consisting of tiny animals and animal-like organisms that drift in water.
Did you know?Zooplankton was coined in modern scientific Greek by pairing zōion (“animal”) with planktos (“wandering, drifting”), so the word itself encodes the idea of creatures carried by the sea’s motion.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
zōion
“animal, living being”
Ancient Greek
Greek
planktos
“wandering, drifting”
Late 19th Century
English
zooplankton
“animal plankton”
Modern English
English
zooplankton
“tiny drifting animals and animal-like organisms in aquatic ecosystems”