poikilotherm

****************************************************************
Introducing WORD SWEEP!, the first board game to feature Merriam-Webster 
definitions! Enjoy hours of challenging fun. Try it at: 
http://www.wordsweep.com 
****************************************************************

The Word of the Day for November 30 is: 

poikilotherm   \poi-KEE-luh-therm\   noun
     : an organism (as a frog) with a variable body temperature that tends to 
fluctuate with and is similar to or slightly higher than the temperature of its 
environment : a cold-blooded organism 

Example sentence:
     The environment controls the body temperature of poikilotherms, although 
they can heat and cool themselves by moving in and out of the sun.

Did you know?
     Poikilotherms are also called "ectotherms" or "cold-blooded animals." Such 
creatures are the thermoregulatory opposites of "endotherms" or "homeotherms" 
-- better known to most of us as "warm-blooded animals" -- which are able to 
maintain a fairly high and constant body temperature relatively independent of 
the temperature of the surroundings. 
"Stenotherms" are creatures that can survive only within a very narrow 
temperature range. The "-therm" in all of these terms comes from the Greek 
"therme," which means "heat."





You Are Subscribed As: gclw-mw-wod7@xxxxxxxxx
To unsubscribe, change your e-mail address or to subscribe to the html
version of Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day, featuring audio
pronunciations, please visit:

http://www.startsampling.com/sm/wod/changeofaddress.iphtml

(c) 2006 by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated

Merriam-Webster, Inc.
47 Federal Street
P.O. Box 281
Springfield, MA 01102