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.

androgynophily (s) (noun), androgynophilies (pl)
In psychiatry, the tendency towards having an intimate relationship with three persons: In Sam's medical class, the topic of androgynophily was discussed because sometimes this form of lovemaking caused medical problems among the individuals involved.
andromimetophile (s) (noun), andromimetophiles (pl)
In psychiatry, a person who tends towards an intimacy involving a trans man or a woman acting like a man: After reading about the life of an andromimetophile, Tom thought that this kind of relationship was perverse.
andromimetophilia (s) (noun), andromimetophilias (pl)
In psychiatry, a loving relationship which is dependent on the subject being the partner of a male impersonator: Dr. Hathaway talked to the group of medical students about andromimetophilia, describing it as being a disorder and could cause quite an unbalanced relationship between those involved.
andromimetophily (s) (noun), andromimetophilies (pl)
A tendency towards an intimacy involving a male impersonator or a trans man: After reading about a description of andromimetophily, Alfred learned that this form of relationship was a kind of disorder that often led those involved to seek a doctor's help.
androphile (s) (noun), androphiles (pl)
1. A person who is attracted towards masculinity: In the book Mary was reading, an androphile was described as a girl who thought she actually should have been born a boy.
2. In biology, the existence of an organism in proximity to mankind and preferring such closeness: Certain mosquitoes are androphiles in that they prefer to get blood from humans instead of animals.
androphilia (s) (noun) (no pl)
The love of masculinity or of men: The sexual orientation of androphilia described in Jane's book was a term used in behavioural science.
androphilic (adjective) (nor comparable)
Referring to an attraction to humans: Mosquitos are noted to be androphilic because they certainly love to suck the blood of people, especially of young children!
androphilous (adjective), more androphilous, most androphilous
Regarding an organism that lives or dwells in the proximity to mankind: Not only mosquitos, but also diseased vectors, as with fungal infections, are quite androphilous and seek out humans to order to exist.
androphily (s) (noun) (no pl)
An attraction towards a man or masculinity; male-oriented: Androphily refers to the sexual preference to other men.
anemophile (s) (noun), anemophiles (pl)
A plant that is fertilized by wind-carried pollen or spores: It can also be stated that an anemophile can be a tree that produces pollen that is distributed by the wind, like the birch, maple, and oak.
anemophilous (adjective) (not comparable)
In botany, referring to the dispersal of spores or pollen of plants by means of the wind: Grasses can be anemonphilous because they are fertilized by the transfer of pollen which is conveyed by air currents or breezes.
anemophily (s) (noun) (no pl)
A type of pollination dispersed by wind: Anemophily is a kind of fertilization which is applied to flowers, trees, etc. that are pollinated by breezes or other air currents.
Anglophile (s) (noun), Anglophiles (pl)
Someone who admires England, its people, its culture, or to what is English: Mr. Jackson loved Great Britain so much, and as an Anglophile, he decided to move there with his family.
anheliophile (s) (noun), anheliophiles (pl)
A life form that thrives in diffuse sunlight: One example of an anheliophile is the flowering plant of the genus Heliconia that grows in the forests of the tropical Americas.
anheliophilous (noun), more anheliophilous, most anheliophilous
Concerning a plant that grows in diffuse sunlight; One example of an anheliophilous plant is an heliconia specie, "heliconias" [a combination of helio-, “sun” and conio-, “dust”].

There are about eighty heliconia species in the New World tropics. With their paddle-shaped leaves and bright zigzaggy bracts, these members of the banana family erupt wherever sunlight taps the forest floor, providing food, drink and shelter to an astonishing cast of characters. For a slice of rain-forest life, there is no better place to look.

Because of their sun-loving, patchy distribution, heliconias have a problem connecting with others of their species. To fertilize one another, the plants need a pollinator that not only covers a lot of territory but is discriminating as well. Hummingbirds are nature’s specialists for this particular purpose.

Most heliconias have long tubular, curved flowers that only a hummingbird bill can negotiate. As they probe the base of a flower, hummingbirds find a treasure of nectar just for them. These energetic little birds drink up to eight times their own body weight each day, and heliconias produce a generous supply of nectar so they will keep coming back for more; pollinating as they go from one heliconia to another.

—Adapted from an article, “Life on Plant Heliconia”
by Donna Johnson in International Wildlife, March-April, 1995.

Quiz button #1 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.