fəˌraməˈnif(ə)rə, ˌfȯrəməˈ- noun plural
Etymology: New Latin, from Latin foramin-, foramen + New Latin -i- + -fera (from neuter plural of Latin -fer )
1. capitalized : an order of Rhizopoda comprising large chiefly marine protozoans that have one or more nuclei, that are generally enclosed in a typically calcareous shell having minute openings for slender branching pseudopodia and consisting of several successively formed communicating chambers each larger than the preceding, that have a complex life cycle in which sexual and asexual generations alternate, and that are so abundant that their shelly remains constitute a major part of various sedimentary limestones (as chalk) and serve to identify geologic horizons — compare index fossil ; see biloculina , globigerina
2. : organisms belong to Foraminifera