motile
In organisms: having the power to move spontaneously.
Other meanings
In organs or organelles: capable of producing motion.
In organs: having the power to move their contents, or to change their shape or tension by writhing or contracting as required by their particular physiological functions.
Related words
- dysmotile
- electromotile
- hypermotile
- hypomotile
- immotile
- motility
- nonmotile
- photomotile
- motilely
Word history
From Latin "mōtus".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “motile” on Wiktionary, by its contributors, published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.