free-living

[ free-liv-ing ]

adjective

1. following a way of life in which one freely indulges the appetites, desires, etc.
2. Biology. noting an organism that is neither parasitic, symbiotic, nor sessile.

free-living

adjective

1. given to ready indulgence of the appetites
2. (of animals and plants) not parasitic; existing independently

Derived Forms

• ˌfree-ˈliver, noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of free-living¹

First recorded in 1810–20

Example Sentences

Nematodes are among the planet's most abundant animals, "free-living" in water, soil and the Earth's crust in addition to parasitizing a large collection of plant and animal species.

From Science Daily

Photosynthesis takes place inside chloroplasts, small compartments within plant cells that contain their own genome, reflecting their past as free-living photosynthetic bacteria before they were engulfed and co-opted by plants.

From Science Daily

The lifecycle of soil-transmitted helminths has two phases -- a free-living stage as eggs and larvae in the environment and an adult stage inside the host.

From Science Daily

"It opens the door to experimentally manipulate the demographic or genetic composition of free-living populations to ask questions about how realistic natural social environments affect health, fitness and life outcomes for individuals," Sheehan said.

From Science Daily

And most recently, some of those species again traded their ability to make silk for a free-living, clinging life in these faster waters.

From Science Magazine

Related Words

• squandering