osmo-, osmia-, osmi-, -osmia, -osmatic (push) +

(Greek: impulse, thrust, push, impel)

Don't confuse this osmo- word-unit with another osmo- unit meaning "smell, odor".

osmotroph
An organism that obtains nutrients through the active uptake of soluble materials across the cell membrane.

This class of organism, which includes the bacteria and fungi, cannot directly utilize particulate material as nutrients. The opposite of phagotroph.

osmotrophic
1. Acquiring food by absorption, as fungi do.
2. Organisms that feed on dissolved organic molecules absorbed from the outside environmenT.
3. Feeding by "absorbing" dissolved food from the surrounding environment. Membrane pumps and pinocytosis are the most likely routes of food uptake.
osmotrophy
The uptake of dissolved organic compounds by osmosis for nutrition.

Organisms which use osmotrophy are osmotrophs. Some mixotrophic microorganisms use osmotrophy to derive energy.

Mixotroph refers to bacterial physiology and the ability to use alternative sources for metabolism and energy and as being capable of growth in either the absence or presence of light, or with either organic or inorganic compounds for nutrition.

osmotropic
A description of a response to an osmotic stimulus.
osmotropism
An orientation response to an osmotic stimulus.
poikilosmosis
The processes by which a cell or tissue adjusts the osmolarity of its fluid to that of its immediate environment.
poikilosmotic
A reference to poikilosmosis.
prososmotaxis
Positive osmotaxis.
thermo-osmosis, thermo osmosis
The movement of liquid in a porous medium due to differences in temperature.
zoosmosis (s) (noun) (no pl)
The process of osmosis in living animal tissues: Zoosmosis involves a movement of water, for example, from a lower solute concentration through a partly penetrable membrane to an area of higher solute concentration.

Cross references of word families that are related directly, or indirectly, to: "push, shove, thrust": pel-; puls-; trud-.