any small reddish freshwater oligochaete worm of the genus Tubifex; it characteristically lives in a tube in sand and is used as food for aquarium fish
Word origin
C19: from New Latin, from Latin tubus tube + facere to make, do
tubifex in American English
(ˈtubəˌfɛks; ˈtjubəˌfɛks)
nounWord forms: pluralˈtubiˌfexes or ˈtubiˌfex
any of a genus (Tubifex) of small, reddish, freshwater, oligochaete worms, often living in chimneylike tubes: found esp. in polluted waters and often used as food for aquarium fish
Word origin
ModL < L tubus, tube + -fex < facere, to make, do1