autotropic
|au-to-trop-ic|
🇺🇸
/ˌɔtəˈtrɑpɪk/
🇬🇧
/ˌɔːtəˈtrɒpɪk/
self-producing food / self-nourishing
Etymology
'autotropic' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'autotrópos', where 'auto-' meant 'self' and 'tropē' meant 'turning'.
'autotropic' passed into New Latin/Modern scientific Latin as 'autotropicus' and was adopted into English scientific usage in the 19th century as 'autotropic'.
Initially, components conveyed the idea of 'turning toward or relating to oneself,' but in scientific usage it came to mean 'capable of producing its own food; autotrophic.'
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
having the ability to produce organic compounds from inorganic substances; self-nourishing (i.e., autotrophic).
Certain bacteria are autotropic and can fix carbon dioxide to build organic molecules.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/11/29 14:26