A Latin term meaning 'elegant' or 'choice', commonly used in scientific names, especially for Caenorhabditis elegans, a model organism in biological research.
Pure Latin, from 'eligere' meaning 'to choose, select'. In scientific nomenclature, it denotes something refined or well-proportioned, chosen for its elegant simplicity or beauty.
C. elegans, a tiny transparent worm, has become one of science's biggest stars despite being only 1mm long and having exactly 959 cells. This 'elegant' creature helped scientists understand aging, development, and behavior so well that research on it has earned multiple Nobel Prizes - proving that elegance truly does come in small packages.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.