drosophila

[ droh-sof-uh-luh, druh- ]
/ droʊˈsɒf ə lə, drə- /

noun, plural dro·soph·i·las, dro·soph·i·lae [droh-sof-uh-lee, druh-] /droʊˈsɒf əˌli, drə-/.

a fly of the genus Drosophila, especially D. melanogaster, used in laboratory studies of genetics and development.

Origin of drosophila

< New Latin < Greek dróso(s) dew + New Latin -phila < Greek -philē, feminine of -philos -phile

Words nearby drosophila

dropwort, drosera, droshky, drosky, drosometer, drosophila, dross, drossy, droste-hülshoff, drought, droughty

Example sentences from the Web for drosophila

British Dictionary definitions for drosophila

drosophila
/ (drɒˈsɒfɪlə) /

noun plural -las or -lae (-ˌliː)

any small dipterous fly of the genus Drosophila, esp D. melanogaster, a species widely used in laboratory genetics studies: family Drosophilidae. They feed on plant sap, decaying fruit, etc Also called: fruit fly, vinegar fly

Word Origin for drosophila

C19: New Latin, from Greek drosos dew, water + -phila; see -phile

Scientific definitions for drosophila

drosophila
[ drō-sŏf′ə-lə ]

Any of various small fruit flies of the genus Drosophila, one species of which (D. melanogaster) is used extensively in genetic research to study patterns of inheritance and the functions of genes.