protozoa

Where does the word "protozoa" come from? It comes from Greek protos zoon, and was adopted directly into English (1860s).

Protozoa’s story begins in Greek: protos zoon meant “the first animal.” Literally first animal, from protos (first) and zoon (animal). It reached English by 1860s as protozoa. Coined for the simplest single-celled organisms classified as animal-like. Today, protozoa means single-celled organisms that behave like animals, capable of movement.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient protos zoon "the first animal", literally first animal, from protos (first) and zoon (animal).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1860s protozoa "single-celled, animal-like organisms", coined for the simplest single-celled organisms classified as animal-like.