Dictionary

algae en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈæl.ɡi/ (US)
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈæl.ɡiː/ (UK)
• /ˈæl.dʒiː/ (UK)
• (General-American) audio
• /ˈæl.d͡ʒi/ (US)

Meanings

1. (uncountable, usually) Algal organisms viewed collectively or as a mass; algal growth.
   • Unlike seaweed, which grows in salt water, algae grows in freshwater ponds (chlorella or spirulina) or wild in the Pacific Northwest (Klamath blue green). 2014, Terry Wahls, Eve Adamson, The Wahls Protocol: How I Beat Progressive MS Using Paleo Principles and Functional Medicine, page 280:
   • It has been disputed whether the sounds thus made are produced by the grating of the creature's tongue-ribbon on the glass, as it files off small particles of algae and vegetable moulds, which are invisible to our eyes... 1902, B. Lindsay, “Chapter 7”, in The Story of Animal Life:
   • An algae bloom has killed thousands of fish in the San Francisco Bay Area in recent weeks, officials say, forcing shoreline cleanups, spreading unpleasant odor and spurring scientists to further investigate the extent of the ecological damage. 2022 September 3, Taylor Romine and Jason Hanna, “An algae bloom has killed thousands of fish in the San Francisco Bay Area”, in CNN, archived from the original on 30 Jun 2023:
   • Algae grows best in shallow water, 3 inches (7.5 cm) deep or less, especially where poor seedbed preparation has created low areas with poor surface drainage, and in fields with inadequate decomposition of organic matter. 1993, Integrated Pest Management for Rice, 2nd Ed., page 54:
2. (form-of, plural) plural of alga
   form of alga
3. (countable, usually) A particular kind of alga.
   • Among these valuable water plants, I noted various seaweed: some Cladostephus verticillatus, peacock's tails, fig-leafed caulerpa, grain-bearing beauty bushes, delicate rosetangle tinted scarlet, sea colander arranged into fan shapes, mermaid's cups that looked like the caps of squat mushrooms and for years had been classified among the zoophytes; in short, a complete series of algae. 1870, Jules Verne, “Chapter 12”, in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas:
   • Although often lumped together, spirulina is a blue-green algae whereas chlorella is a green algae. 2006, Andi Brown, The Whole Pet Diet: Eight Weeks to Great Health for Dogs and Cats, page 144:
   • This hollow, lumpy, yellow-brown algae grows epiphytically in sac-like clumps on large seaweeds and on rocks. 1984, Deborah A. Coulombe, The Seaside Naturalist: A Guide to Study at the Seashore, page 33:
   • This algae grows relatively quickly, even in temporary ponds and water holes in the desert, so it remained widely known. 1997, Amadeo M. Rea, At the Desert's Green Edge: An Ethnobotany of the Gila River Pima, page 98:

Forms

Deriveds

Siamese algae-eater · oilgae · algaecidal · antialgae · algivore · algicide · globe algae