2 definitions found From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]: Diatom \Di"a*tom\ (d[imac]`[.a]*t[o^]m), n. [Gr. dia`tomos cut in two. See {Diatomous}.] 1. (Bot.) One of the {Diatomace[ae]}, a family of minute unicellular Alg[ae] having a siliceous covering of great delicacy, each individual multiplying by spontaneous division. By some authors diatoms are called {Bacillari[ae]}, but this word is not in general use. [1913 Webster] 2. A particle or atom endowed with the vital principle. [1913 Webster] The individual is nothing. He is no more than the diatom, the bit of protoplasm. --Mrs. E. Lynn Linton. [1913 Webster] From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]: diatom n : microscopic unicellular marine or freshwater colonial alga having cell walls impregnated with silica
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