philo-, phil-, -phile, -philia, -philic, -philous, -phily, -philiac, -philist, -philism
(Greek: love, loving, friendly to, fondness for, attraction to; strong tendency toward, affinity for)
These are just a few of the meanings set up for the etymological meanings of philo- which comes to us from Greek.
In biology, there are many words that use philo-, phil- to mean "thriving in such and such a place or situation; or exhibiting a tendency for a specified condition" for its existence.
Other meanings include: "strongly attracted to; such as, an organism that loves or is strongly attracted to something which is specified".
In psychology and psychiatry, -phile, -philia, etc. use this element as a word termination indicating an abnormal craving or attraction to or an affinity for an object as shown by the word stems to which they are affixed.
An animal or plant that dwells in the tops of tall trees: Crows and herons are acrodendrophile known to build their nests way up high in trees.
acrodendrophilous (adjective), more acrodendrophilous, most acrodendrophilous
A description of creatures that live in treetop areas: Vultures are considered to be acrodendrophilous because they make their nests on the tops of trees.
An abode of various animals in the tops of trees either for an extended time or for a short period: In the spring, when Virginia was on her way to school, she could see examples of acrodendrophilies, consisting of gray herons, building their nests in the crests of the towering trees beside the road where they were also able to get food from the nearby river.
An individual who inhabits the mountains or strongly prefers being in the alpine regions: Jack was considered to be an acrophile who loved to spend all his holidays rock climbing in the Alps.
acrophilous (adjective), more acrophilous, most acrophilous
Pertaining to a form of life that has a strong preference for staying in lofty peaks rather than living in the lowlands: In the book Susan was reading, there was an article about plants and animals that selected high altitudes to dwell, and they were referred to as being acrophilous organisms.
An individuals who idolizes being present in high rugged or hilly elevations: Tom was an acrophily who decided to live in the highest place in the mountains and experience the extreme weather conditions there.
Creatures, or even humans, that prefer or have a special fondness for living on beaches: Judy couldn't imagine living anywhere else than at the rocky seashores, and her friends termed her as being an arctophile!
actophilous (adjective), more actophilous, most actophilous
A reference to an organism living on rocky seashores or growing in coastal areas: Sand crabs, sand fleas, clams, and blood worms all are considered to be actophilous creatures that thrive in the sand in coastal regions.
Among many actophilous animals are the barnacles, mussels, snails, and starfish which are a great supply of food for many birds, like terns, gulls, and ringed ployers.
People, including animals, that definitely favor being near the sea waters: Mussels, starfish, slaters, and snails are examples of actophilies growing and dwelling on coasts.
Any plants or their seeds, insects, or other creatures which are dispersed to other places by the wind: Being aelophiles, the dandelions let the wind or soft breezes distribute their seeds to different places in the early summer.
aelophilous (adjective), more aelophilous, most aelophilous
A reference to plants that are distributed by stormy winds: The aelophilous plants from Jim’s untidy garden spread a huge amount of pollen in the neighborhood.
Anything which is scattered by the wind to other locations: On the wheat land, aelophilies started to grow after the stormy winds of the season.
A person who has a special love of, or a fondness for, cats: Lynn's sister must be an aelurophile because she absolutely adores her little purring fuzzball.
aelurophilic, ailurophilic (adjective); more aelurophilic, most aelurophilic; more ailurophilic, most ailurophilic
A reference to anyone who has a special fondness for cats: Mildred loved cats, but not dogs, and could be described as an aelurophilic girl.
aelurophilous (adjective), more aelurophilous, most aelurophilous
Relating to a person who has strong affections for tabbies in general: Jenny, quite aelurophilous, was so fond of felines and found some books about such domesticated pets that she read in just one day!
You may take a self-scoring quiz over some of the words in this section by just clicking this Philo Quiz #1 link.Related "love, fondness" units: agape-; amat-; vener-; venus.
