What does ciliate mean?
A ciliate is, first and foremost, a microscopic single-celled organism belonging to the group Ciliophora, distinguished by the thousands of tiny hair-like projections called cilia that cover its body. By beating these cilia in coordinated waves, ciliates such as the paramecium propel themselves through water and sweep food particles into their mouths. The word also functions as an adjective, describing any cell or biological surface that bears cilia — as in ciliated epithelium, the tissue that lines human airways. Derived ultimately from the Latin cilium, meaning eyelid or eyelash, the term is firmly rooted in technical biology and appears mainly in scientific literature. Though unfamiliar to most general readers, it names organisms of remarkable importance: ciliates are abundant in nearly every aquatic environment and play significant roles in microbial food webs, while ciliated tissues perform essential housekeeping functions within the human body.
Any single-celled organism of the phylum Ciliophora, characterized by rows or bands of cilia used for locomotion and feeding.
"Biologists observed dozens of different ciliates in a single drop of lake water."
Plural is "ciliates"; used chiefly in microbiology and zoology.
Bearing or covered with cilia; having hair-like projections resembling cilia.
"The ciliate lining of the bronchi helps expel inhaled particles from the lungs."
In descriptive prose, the fuller form "ciliated" is generally preferred.
Applies only to the noun sense; standard regular plural.
"Many ciliates reproduce asexually by binary fission."
You owe your survival partly to ciliates: the cilia lining your airways sweep mucus and debris out of your lungs thousands of times a day.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of ciliate
The word ciliate comes from Latin, derived from cilium, which meant both eyelid and eyelash. In English it was formed from the New Latin taxonomic name Ciliata, applied to organisms bearing hair-like appendages reminiscent of lashes. The same Latin root gives us cilium and cilia in modern anatomy, the adjective ciliary, and, more distantly, supercilious, which traces back to supercilium, meaning eyebrow.
Related word forms
How ciliate is actually used
"Ciliate" is primarily a technical term used in biology, microbiology, and medicine, and is rare outside scientific writing. As an adjective it is often found in the form "ciliated" when modifying nouns such as "cells" or "epithelium." The plural of the noun is "ciliates."
Easily confused with ciliate
A cilium is one single hair-like structure, whereas a ciliate is an organism possessing many cilia, or a general term describing something covered in them.
A silicate is a mineral compound containing silicon and oxygen, while a ciliate is a biological organism or structure bearing hair-like cilia — the two differ in spelling, meaning, and field.