Word.ws English Dictionary

xenomorphism

xenomorphism noun: the process or result of taking a form that reflects the surrounding environment.

Noun

xenomorphism (countable and uncountable, plural xenomorphisms)

  1. The process or result of taking a form that reflects the surrounding environment.
    • Xenomorphism in oysters remains restricted to the umbonal region of the right valve.1953, Raymond Cecil Moore, Curt Teichert, Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology: Protista 2. vols. 1-2. c1964, page 95
    • The form of the enigma basis is inherently functional; the details and form of the locus in the Mercenaria are responsive and the juxtaposition of the Mclellania basis with the Mercenaria produces xenomorphism in both.1969, Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology - Issue 53, page 487

Examples of xenomorphism in a sentence

  • The xenomorphism of sylvite is consistent with the fact that even after the complete solidification of halite this mineral must have ...1970, Doklady of the Academy of Sciences of the U.S.S.R.:
  • Without change in the percentage of the other components, there is a structural variation, that is a general xenomorphism.1975, E.J. Grill, Geology of Central Badakhshan and Surrounding Countries, page 200:
  • If an oyster is attached to a solid object, the left or lower valve will follow the contour of that object and this is called xenomorphism (Fig. 73).1988, D. B. Quayle, Pacific oyster culture in British Columbia - Issue 218, →ISBN, page 77:

Forms of xenomorphism

pluralxenomorphisms

Origin of xenomorphism

From xeno- + morph + -ism.

Questions about xenomorphism

What does xenomorphism mean?
Xenomorphism means the process or result of taking a form that reflects the surrounding environment.
How do you use xenomorphism in a sentence?
The xenomorphism of sylvite is consistent with the fact that even after the complete solidification of halite this mineral must have ...
What part of speech is xenomorphism?
Xenomorphism is a noun.
What is the plural of xenomorphism?
The plural of xenomorphism is xenomorphisms.

Words near xenomorphism in the dictionary

  1. xenomisia
  2. xenomitochondrial
  3. xenomonitoring
  4. xenomorph
  5. xenomorphic
  6. xenomorphism
  7. xenomorphisms
  8. xenomorphology
  9. xenomorphosis
  10. xenomorphous
  11. xenomorphously

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: xenomorphism (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “xenomorphism.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/xenomorphism. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.