zygomorphismnoun
Factsheet
What does the noun zygomorphism mean?
There is one meaning in OED's entry for the noun zygomorphism. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.
Entry status
OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.
How common is the noun zygomorphism?
| 1870 | 0.0024 |
| 1880 | 0.0023 |
| 1890 | 0.002 |
| 1900 | 0.0018 |
| 1910 | 0.0019 |
| 1920 | 0.0016 |
| 1930 | 0.0011 |
| 1940 | 0.001 |
| 1950 | 0.0009 |
| 1960 | 0.0008 |
| 1970 | 0.0008 |
| 1980 | 0.0005 |
| 1990 | 0.0004 |
| 2000 | 0.0004 |
| 2010 | 0.0003 |
Where does the noun zygomorphism come from?
Earliest known use
1870s
The earliest known use of the noun zygomorphism is in the 1870s.
OED's only evidence for zygomorphism is from 1875, in a translation by Alfred Bennett, botanist and publisher, and William Thiselton-Dyer, botanist.
Nearby entries
- zygodactylous, adj.1828–
- zygodont, adj.1888–
- zygogenesis, n.1950–
- zygology, n.1970–
- zygoma, n.1684–
- zygomatic, adj. & n.1712–
- zygomatico-, comb. form
- zygomato-, comb. form
- zygomere, n.1966–
- zygomorphic, adj.1875–
- zygomorphism, n.1875–
- zygomorphous, adj.1879–
- Zygomycetes, n.1887–
- zygomycetous, adj.1928–
- zygon, n.1886–
- zygonema, n.1911–
- zygoneurous, adj.1901–
- zygophiuran, adj. & n.1892–
- zygophore, n.1904–
- zygophyllaceous, adj.1887–
- zygophyte, n.1885–
Meaning & use
- 1875–The character of being zygomorphic.Stressed as zygoˈmorphism.
- 1875
The zygomorphism of the flower.
A. W. Bennett & W. T. T. Dyer, translation of J. von Sachs, Text-book of Botany 534
the world plants part of plant (defined by) distribution, arrangement, or position [nouns] monosymmetry or polysymmetry- monosymmetry1875–The condition of being monosymmetric.
- polysymmetry1875–Botany. The condition of being polysymmetrical.
- zygomorphism1875–The character of being zygomorphic.
Frequency
zygomorphism typically occurs fewer than 0.01 times per million words in modern written English.
zygomorphism is in frequency band 1, which contains words occurring fewer than 0.001 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands
Frequency of zygomorphism, n., 1870–2010
* Occurrences per million words in written English
Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.
The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.
For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.
Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.
| Decade | Frequency per million words |
|---|---|
| 1870 | 0.0024 |
| 1880 | 0.0023 |
| 1890 | 0.002 |
| 1900 | 0.0018 |
| 1910 | 0.0019 |
| 1920 | 0.0016 |
| 1930 | 0.0011 |
| 1940 | 0.001 |
| 1950 | 0.0009 |
| 1960 | 0.0008 |
| 1970 | 0.0008 |
| 1980 | 0.0005 |
| 1990 | 0.0004 |
| 2000 | 0.0004 |
| 2010 | 0.0003 |