zooid

[zoh-oid] /ˈzoʊ ɔɪd/
noun
1.
any organic body or cell capable of spontaneous movement and of an existence more or less apart from or independent of the parent organism.
2.
any animal organism or individual capable of separate existence, and produced by fission, gemmation, or some method other than direct sexual reproduction.
3.
any one of the recognizably distinct individuals or elements of a compound or colonial animallike organism, whether or not detached or detachable.
adjective
4.
Also, zooidal. pertaining to, resembling, or of the nature of an animal.
Origin
1850-55; zo- + -oid
Examples from the web for zooid
  • Each zooid has whorls of delicate feeding tentacles swaying slowly in the water catching food.
British Dictionary definitions for zooid

zooid

/ˈzəʊɔɪd/
noun
1.
any independent animal body, such as an individual of a coelenterate colony
2.
a motile cell or body, such as a gamete, produced by an organism
Derived Forms
zooidal, adjective
zooid in Medicine

zooid zo·oid (zō'oid')
n.

  1. An organic cell or organized body that has independent movement within a living organism, especially a motile gamete such as a spermatozoon.

  2. An independent animallike organism produced asexually, as by budding or fission.

  3. One of the distinct individuals forming a colonial animal such as a coral.