non-halophyte
|non-hal-o-phyte|
🇺🇸
/nɑnˈhæl.əˌfaɪt/
🇬🇧
/nɒnˈhæl.əˌfaɪt/
not a salt-tolerant plant
Etymology
'non-halophyte' is formed by the negative prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non', meaning 'not') attached to 'halophyte' (from Greek 'halos' meaning 'salt' + 'phyton' meaning 'plant').
'halophyte' is a modern botanical formation from Greek elements 'halos' and 'phyton' via New Latin/botanical coinage; adding the productive English prefix 'non-' produced 'non-halophyte' to indicate the opposite of a halophyte.
The components originally referred directly to 'salt' and 'plant'; the combined term has consistently meant 'a plant adapted to saline conditions', and 'non-halophyte' has come to mean the opposite: 'a plant not adapted to saline conditions.'
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a plant that is not a halophyte; i.e., a plant that does not tolerate or thrive in saline (salty) soils or environments.
Many common crops are non-halophytes and will decline or die in saline soils.
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Adjective 1
not halophytic; not adapted to tolerate saline conditions.
Non-halophytic species are generally excluded from coastal salt marshes.
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Last updated: 2025/08/22 17:01