-phyte

1. variant of phyto- as final element of compound words:

   lithophyte.

-phyte

combining form

1. indicating a plant of a specified type or habitat

   lithophyte

   thallophyte

Derived Forms

• -phytic, combining_form:in_adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of -phyte¹

from Greek phuton plant

Words That Use -phyte

What does -phyte mean?

The combining form -phyte is used like a suffix meaning “plant.” It is often used in scientific terms, especially in biology and botany.

The combining form –phyte comes from the Greek phytón, meaning “plant.” The Greek phytón also helps form the word neóphytos, source of the word neophyte, a “beginner” or “novice.” Neophyte literally means “newly planted” and originally referred to a newly baptized Christian.

The corresponding form of -phyte combined to the beginning of words is phyto-.

Want to know more? Read our Words That Use phyto- article.

Examples of -phyte

One example of a scientific term that features the combining form -phyte is macrophyte. A macrophyte is “a plant, especially a marine plant, large enough to be visible to the naked eye.”

You might be familiar with the combining form macro-, which means “large,” among other senses. As we have seen, -phyte means “plant.” Macrophyte, then, literally translates to “large plant.”

What are some words that use the combining form -phyte?

• aerophyte
• cormophyte
• ectophyte
• endophyte
• epiphyte
• hygrophyte
• microphyte
• geophyte
• sciophyte
• zoophyte (ultimately from the equivalent form of -phyte in Greek)

What are some other forms that -phyte may be commonly confused with?

• -phyll
• photo-
• phyco-
• phylo-
• psycho-
• pyelo-

Break it down!

The opposite of macro- is micro-, meaning “small.” With this in mind, what does microphyte literally translate to?