A long, flat parasitic worm that lives inside the digestive system of humans and animals, feeding on food that passes through.
Compound of 'tape' (from the worm's flat, ribbon-like appearance) + 'worm.' Named descriptively in English by the 1500s based on its distinctive shape.
Tapeworms can grow up to 80 feet long inside a single person and have no mouth—instead absorbing nutrients directly through their skin, making them evolutionary masters of freeloading.
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