A long, thin worm that lives in soil and helps break down dead plant material and improve soil quality for growing plants.
From Old English 'eorðe' (earth) combined with 'wyrm' (worm), both Germanic roots. It's a simple compound word describing where the creature lives and what it is.
Earthworms are ecosystem engineers who deserve statues built in their honor—a single earthworm can consume and improve its weight in soil every day, and without them, dead plants would pile up in forests and we'd have no rich topsoil for crops.
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