trophic
adjective
tro·phic
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Definition of trophic
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: of or relating to nutrition : nutritional
trophic disorders
2
: tropic entry 3
3
: promoting cellular growth, differentiation, and survival
-trophic
adjective combining formDefinition of -trophic (Entry 2 of 2)
1a
: of, relating to, or characterized by (such) nutrition
ectotrophic
b
: requiring or utilizing (such) a kind of nutrition
heterotrophic
2
: -tropic sense 2
gonadotrophic
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Other Words from trophic
Adjective
trophically
\ ËtrĆ-fi-k(É-)lÄ
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adverb
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adverb
Examples of trophic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
Interestingly, the trophic position varied among families, ranging from just a bit above herbivores (2.11) to solid carnivores (3.09). — Paige Embry, Scientific American, "Surprise: Bees Need Meat," 23 Aug. 2019 In biological circles, this ecological ripple effect is known as a trophic cascade. — Brent Crane, Discover Magazine, "Grizzly Bears Might Return to California. Is the State Ready?," 12 Mar. 2019 As discriminating hunters of their territoriesâ stragglers, wolves actually keep herds healthy, and structure food webs with wide-reaching ripple effects, called trophic cascades. — Josh Adler, National Geographic, "Making peace in the Golan Heightsâbetween humans and wolves," 11 Apr. 2019 The effect is known as a trophic cascade, in which the removal of a key species has ripple effects throughout the ecosystem. — Steve Winter, National Geographic, "How City-Dwelling Leopards Improve Human Health," 9 Mar. 2018 There has been a lot of research done on how removing predators can cause a trophic cascade that can result in a collapse of a system. — Jacqueline Cutler, USA TODAY, "Why the cheetah population is shrinking," 12 Dec. 2017 This is, in effect, a trophic shiftâthe length of the speciesâ food chain has changed. — Wendy Mitman Clarke, Smithsonian, "Bones of the Hawaiian Petrel Open Up a Window Into the Birdsâ Changing Diet," 26 Apr. 2017 This shift has created a trophic mismatch, meaning plants bloom earlier, and insects that eat the plants emerge earlier, while the red knot chicks that eat the insects are hatching too late to feed on them at their peak. — National Geographic, "Arctic Warming Is Shrinking This Adorable Shorebird," 12 May 2016 This indicated that the birdsâ food chain had become shorter; somewhere in the birdsâ food chain, animals were eating at a lower trophic level. — Wendy Mitman Clarke, Smithsonian, "Bones of the Hawaiian Petrel Open Up a Window Into the Birdsâ Changing Diet," 26 Apr. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'trophic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for trophic
trophic
adjective
tro·phic
| \ ËtrĆ-fik
\
\
Medical Definition of trophic
1
: of or relating to nutrition : nutritional
trophic disorders
2
: tropic
3
: promoting cellular growth, differentiation, and survival
nerve growth factor is a trophic agent
Other Words from trophic
trophically
\ -fi-k(É-)lÄ
\
adverb
\
adverb