symbiote

noun

sym·​bi·​ote ˈsim-bē-ˌōt  -ˌbī- 

plural symbiotes

: an organism living in symbiosis : symbiont

The thing in the crevice was some sort of vegetative symbiote, I conjectured. It fed its companions foods that it manufactured from air, water, subterranean temperature variances (if it had deep roots), and probably other lichens as well as minerals leached from the rock.

—Matthew Hughes

Examples of symbiote in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Trying to clear his name, Eddie Brock is hunted by a monster sent by the creator of the symbiotes, only to uncover a secret operation in Area 51 to harvest the creatures and exploit them. — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 21 Aug. 2026

Brock’s arrival, coupled with the symbiote reveal at the end of season 1, appears to set up the Venom arc. — Devan Coggan, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Aug. 2026

Baker and his team placed a bevy of hard corals on the structure, including corals implanted with a more heat-resistant algal symbiote (the tiny critters that live inside the coral animal and provide it shade and food). — Alex Harris july 22, Miami Herald, 22 July 2026

Kicking off with 2018’s Venom, directed by Ruben Fleischer, the franchise centers on Eddie Brock, an investigative journalist who becomes an antagonist to Spider-Man after an alien symbiote bonds to his body. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 20 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

perhaps borrowed from French, borrowed from Greek symbiōtḗs "companion, partner," from symbiō-, variant stem of symbioûn "to live together" + -tēs, agent suffix — more at symbiosis

First Known Use

1877, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

symbiote

noun

sym·​bi·​ote ˈsim-ˌbī-ˌōt  -bē- 

: symbiont