extremophile

noun

ex·trem·o·phile ik-ˈstrē-mə-ˌfī(-ə)l

: an organism that lives under extreme environmental conditions (as in a hot spring or ice cap)

Did you know?

No, an extremophile is not an enthusiast of extreme sports (though -phile does mean "one who loves or has an affinity for"). Rather, extremophiles are organisms—mostly microorganisms—that thrive in environments once considered uninhabitable, from places with high levels of toxicity and radiation to boiling-hot deep-sea volcanoes to Antarctic ice sheets. Scientists have even created a new biological domain to classify some of these extremophiles: Archaea (from Greek archaios, meaning "ancient"). These extremophiles may have a lot in common with the first organisms to appear on earth billions of years ago. If so, they can give us insight into how life on our planet may have arisen. They are also being studied to learn about possible life forms on other planets, where conditions are extreme compared to conditions on Earth.

Examples of extremophile in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Antarctica also offers a unique opportunity to study extremophiles—organisms that thrive in extreme environments. —

Shelli Brunswick, Forbes, 11 Oct. 2024 And so some of these extremophiles are not metabolizing organic material. —

quantamagazine.org, 26 Sep. 2024 And then there’s the geology, the sea life, the extremophiles and the changing climate. —

Sarah Scoles, Scientific American, 4 Sep. 2024 In the future, the team hopes to explore how extremophiles evolve within microwaves over time. —

Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for extremophile

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'extremophile.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.