Trends oflichen
View usage for:
lichen
(laɪkən)
Word forms: plural lichens
variable noun
Lichen is a group of tiny plants that looks like moss and grows on the surface of things such as rocks, trees, and walls.
lichen in British English
(ˈlaɪkən, ˈlɪtʃən)
noun
1.
an organism that is formed by the symbiotic association of a fungus and an alga or cyanobacterium and occurs as crusty patches or bushy growths on tree trunks, bare ground, etc. Lichens are now classified as a phylum of fungi (Mycophycophyta)
2. pathology
any of various eruptive disorders of the skin
Derived forms
lichened (ˈlichened) adjective
lichen-like (ˈlichen-ˌlike)
adjective
lichenoid (ˈlichenˌoid)
adjective
lichenous (ˈlichenous) or lichenose (ˈlichenˌose)
adjective
Word origin
C17: via Latin from Greek leikhēn, from leikhein to licklichen in American English
(ˈlaɪkən)
noun
1.
any of various small plants composed of a particular fungus and a particular alga growing in an intimate symbiotic association and forming a dual plant, commonly adhering in colored patches or spongelike branches to rock, wood, soil, etc.
2.
any of various skin diseases characterized by papules and enlarged skin markings
verb transitive
3.
to cover with lichens
Derived forms
lichenous (ˈlichenous) adjective or ˈlichenˌose (ˈlaɪkənˌoʊs)
Word origin
L < Gr leichēn, prob. < leichein, to lickImage oflichen
© kavring, shutterstock
Examples of 'lichen' in a sentencelichen
Word lists withlichen
algae, algaeIn other languageslichen
British English: lichen NOUN
Lichen is a group of tiny plants that looks like moss and grows on the surface of things such as rocks, trees, and walls.
- American English: lichen
- Brazilian Portuguese: líquen
- Chinese: 地衣
- European Spanish: liquen
- French: lichen
- German: Flechte
- Italian: lichene
- Japanese: 地衣類
- Korean: 이끼
- European Portuguese: líquen
- Latin American Spanish: liquen