bryophyte

[ brahy-uh-fahyt ]
/ ˈbraɪ əˌfaɪt /

noun Botany.

any of the Bryophyta, a phylum of nonvascular plants comprising the true mosses and liverworts.

Origin of bryophyte

1875–80; < New Latin Bryophyta name of the group; see bryo-, -phyte

OTHER WORDS FROM bryophyte

bry·o·phyt·ic [brahy-uh-fit-ik] /ˌbraɪ əˈfɪt ɪk/, adjective

Words nearby bryophyte

brynza, bryo-, bryology, bryony, bryophyllum, bryophyte, bryozoa, bryozoan, brython, brythonic, brześć nad bugiem

British Dictionary definitions for bryophyte

bryophyte
/ (ˈbraɪəˌfaɪt) /

noun

any plant of the phyla Bryophyta (mosses), Hepatophyta (liverworts), or Anthocerophyta (hornworts), having stems and leaves but lacking true vascular tissue and roots and reproducing by spores

Derived forms of bryophyte

bryophytic (ˌbraɪəˈfɪtɪk), adjective

Word Origin for bryophyte

C19: New Latin, from Greek bruon moss + -phyte

Scientific definitions for bryophyte

bryophyte
[ brī′ə-fīt′ ]

A member of a large group of seedless green plants including the mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. Bryophytes lack the specialized tissues xylem and phloem that circulate water and dissolved nutrients in the vascular plants. Bryophytes generally live on land but are mostly found in moist environments, for they reproduce by spores that require water for transport. In contrast to the vascular plants, the gametophyte (haploid) generation of bryophytes constitutes the larger plant form, while the small sporophyte (diploid) generation grows on or within the gametophyte and depends upon it for nutrition.