Main Entry: plas·mo·di·um

Pronunciation: \plaz-ˈmō-dē-əm\

Function: noun

Inflected Form(s): plural -dia\-dē-ə\

Etymology: New Latin, from plasm- + -odium thing resembling, from Greek -ōdēs like

Date: 1875

1 a : a motile multinucleate mass of protoplasm resulting from fusion of uninucleate amoeboid cells; also : an organism (as a stage of a slime mold) that consists of such a structure b : syncytium 1
2 : a sporozoan parasite (genus Plasmodium) that is the causative agent of malaria