n., pl., -bas, also -bas, or -bae, also -bae (-bē).
Any of various one-celled aquatic or parasitic protozoans of the genus Amoeba or related genera, having no definite form and consisting of a mass of protoplasm containing one or more nuclei surrounded by a flexible outer membrane. It moves by means of pseudopods.
[New Latin, genus name, from Greek amoibē, change, from ameibein, to change.]
amoebic a·moe'bic (-bĭk) adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
