AUTOTROPH


Meaning of AUTOTROPH in English

— autotrophic , adj.

/aw"teuh trof', -trohf'/ , n. Biol.

any organism capable of self-nourishment by using inorganic materials as a source of nutrients and using photosynthesis or chemosynthesis as a source of energy, as most plants and certain bacteria and protists. Cf. heterotroph .

[ 1935-40; back formation from autotrophic; see AUTO- 1 , TROPHIC ]

Random House Webster's Unabridged English dictionary.      Полный английский словарь Вебстер - Random House .