Also ‑phycean.
Alga.
Modern Latin plural, derived from Greek phukos, seaweed.
Terms in this ending are systematic biological names for classes of algae. Examples include Chlorophyceae (Greek khlōros, green), a large and important group of freshwater green algae; Dinophyceae (Greek dinos, whirling), the dinoflagellates; and Phaeophyceae (Greek phaios, dusky), the brown algae. Words ending in ‑phycean are nouns describing members of such a class: chlorophycean.
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