free-swimming
adjective
free-swim·ming
ˈfrē-ˈswi-miŋ 
: able to swim about : not attached
the free-swimming larva of the barnacle
Examples of free-swimming in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
These structures evolved billions of years ago from free-swimming bacteria that were engulfed by some of humanity's earliest ancestors.
—
Sneha Khedkar, Scientific American, 1 Jan. 2024
Those snails, in turn, shed the worm's free-swimming larvae, which can then penetrate the exoskeleton of O. grillus.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 7 Sep. 2023
Fossilized polyps have been found in about 560-million-year old rocks, but the origin of the more free-swimming medusa or jellyfish is not well understood.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 2 Aug. 2023
That’s not the case for orcas, which are massive and free-swimming.
—Gene Johnson, Anchorage Daily News, 20 Mar. 2023
Sneha Khedkar, Scientific American, 1 Jan. 2024
Those snails, in turn, shed the worm's free-swimming larvae, which can then penetrate the exoskeleton of O. grillus.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 7 Sep. 2023
Fossilized polyps have been found in about 560-million-year old rocks, but the origin of the more free-swimming medusa or jellyfish is not well understood.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 2 Aug. 2023
That’s not the case for orcas, which are massive and free-swimming.
—Gene Johnson, Anchorage Daily News, 20 Mar. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'free-swimming.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Free-swimming.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/free-swimming. Accessed 19 Sep. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
free-swimming
adjective
free-swim·ming
-ˌswim-iŋ
: able to swim about : not attached
a free-swimming larva of a trematode
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