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  • zoon
    zoon
    noun
    any of the individuals of a compound organism.
  • -zoon
    -zoon
    a combining form meaning “animal,” “organism” of the kind specified by the initial element, often corresponding to zoological class names ending in -zoa, with -zoon used to name a single member of such a class.

zoon

1 American  
[zoh-on] / ˈzoʊ ɒn /

noun

Biology Rare.

plural

zoa

  1. any of the individuals of a compound organism.

  2. any individual, or the individuals collectively, produced from a single egg.

  3. zooid.

-zoon 2 American  

  1. a combining form meaning “animal,” “organism” of the kind specified by the initial element, often corresponding to zoological class names ending in -zoa, with -zoon used to name a single member of such a class.

    protozoon.
-zoon 1 British  

combining form

  1. indicating an individual animal or an independently moving entity derived from an animal

    spermatozoon
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
zoon 2 British  
/ ˈzəʊɒn /

noun

  1. a less common term for zooid

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What does -zoon mean? The combining form -zoon is used like a suffix meaning “animal” or "organism." It is occasionally used in scientific terms, particularly to refer to a single member of classes in zoology. In zoology, class has a specific meaning that refers to taxonomy. The form -zoon comes from Greek zôion, meaning “animal.” The word zoo also ultimately comes from this Greek root. Zoo is shortened from zoological garden. What are variants of -zoon?While -zoon doesn't have any variants, it is related to the form -zoa, which is the plural form of -zoon, as in Protozoa. When combined as a prefix, -zoon becomes zoo- or zo-, as in zooplankton or zooid. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use articles for zoo-, zo-, and -zoa. In some instances, -zoa is made singular by adding an -n to the end of the word, rather than using the combining form -zoon, as in sporozoan.

Other Word Forms

  • zoonal adjective

Etymology

Origin of zoon1

First recorded in 1860–65; from New Latin zōon, from Greek zôion “animal”

Origin of -zoon2

see origin at zoon

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Cameras on the arms let the surgeons see what is happening, and they can zoon in and magnify the area being operated on.

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2022

When Aristotle labelled our species a zoon politikon, or “political animal”, he linked this idea to our mental capacities.

From The Guardian • Mar. 12, 2019

The Agriculture Department shut down the zoon in November after multiple complaints about animals being mistreated and kept in poor conditions.

From Washington Times • Mar. 16, 2017

Thou hast a brave soul, mijn zoon, mijn Bram; and this trouble is not all for thy loss and grief.

From The Bow of Orange Ribbon A Romance of New York by Hampe, Theo.

"Iron nails! if you think so, myn arm zoon, you musd be very ill indeed."

From Old Saint Paul's A Tale of the Plague and the Fire by Ainsworth, William Harrison

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.