symbiotic en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ˌsɪm.baɪˈɒt.ɪk/ (UK)
- /ˌsɪm.biˈɑt.ɪk/ (US)
- (Australia) audio
- /ˌsɪm.biˈɒt.ɪk/ (UK)
- (US) audio
- /ˌsɪm.baɪˈɑt.ɪk/ (US)
Etymology
From symbiosis + -tic, from Ancient Greek συμβίωσις (sumbíōsis), from σύν (sún, “with”) + βίος (bíos, “life”).
Meanings
-
(not-comparable) Of, or relating to symbiosis; living together.
A lichen is a fungus with symbiotic algae among its cells.
Orchids rely on fungi to reproduce. Their tiny seeds don't have any on-board nutrients (like beans and apples) and will not germinate until they are infected by a symbiotic fungus which supplies them with food. Known as a protocorm, this tiny orchid-fungus ball grows, turns green and eventually starts to photosynthesise.
2014 April 5, “Quite interesting: A quietly intriguing column from the brains behind QI, the BBC quiz show. This week; QI orchids you not”, in The Daily Telegraph (Weekend), page W22:
-
(broadly, informal, not-comparable) Of a relationship with mutual benefit between two individuals, organisms, or groups.
[Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's] arguably symbiotic relationship with Hamas goes back to his election in 1996, when he upset left-wing incumbent Shimon Peres following a spate of Hamas bombings, which Mr. Netanyahu said proved the peace process could not be trusted.
2025 January 30, Dina Kraft, “How Gaza hostage-release drama works for both Hamas and Netanyahu”, in The Christian Science Monitor:While pro-tech influencers like podcast host Lex Fridman have for years formed a symbiotic relationship with tech elites like Elon Musk, some firms have decided this year to cut out the middleman entirely.
2025 November 29, Nick Robins-Early, “How big tech is creating its own friendly media bubble to ‘win the narrative battle online’”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
Deriveds
perisymbiotic · nonsymbiotic · photosymbiotic · parasymbiotic · symbiotically · microsymbiotic · endosymbiotic · asymbiotic · chemosymbiotic · phylosymbiotic · ectosymbiotic · exosymbiotic · presymbiotic · episymbiotic
Relateds
Synonyms
mutualistic (with mutual benefit)
Translations (29)
pl symbiotyczny (having a mutually beneficial relationship) · fi symbioottinen (biology: living together) · fr symbiotique (having a mutually beneficial relationship) · pl symbiotyczny (biology: living together) · el συμβιωτικός (biology: living together) · ca simbiòtic (having a mutually beneficial relationship) · fr symbiotique (biology: living together) · uk симбіоти́чний (biology: living together) · nl symbiotisch (biology: living together) · it simbiotico (biology: living together) · pt simbiótico (biology: living together) · mk взаемен (biology: living together) · es simbiótico (biology: living together) · lv simbiotisks (biology: living together) · mk симбиотичен (biology: living together) · cs symbiotický (biology: living together) · es simbiótico (having a mutually beneficial relationship) · pt simbiótico (having a mutually beneficial relationship) · tl salighayin (biology: living together) · it simbiotico (having a mutually beneficial relationship) · mk взаемен (having a mutually beneficial relationship) · ca simbiòtic (biology: living together) · ast simbióticu (biology: living together) · de symbiotisch (biology: living together) · ru симбиоти́ческий (biology: living together) · da symbiotisk (biology: living together) · sv symbiotisk (biology: living together) · gl simbiótico (biology: living together) · fi symbioottinen (having a mutually beneficial relationship)