A protist (/ ˈ p r oʊ t ɪ s t / PROH-tist) or protoctist is any eukaryotic organism that is not an animal, plant, or fungus. Protists do not form a natural group, or clade, but are a paraphyletic grouping of all descendants of the last eukaryotic common ancestor excluding plants, animals, and fungi.

Feb 28, 2025 · protist, any member of a group of diverse eukaryotic, predominantly unicellular microscopic organisms. They may share certain morphological and physiological characteristics with animals or plants or both.

Apr 27, 2017 · Protists are a group of loosely connected, mostly unicellular eukaryotic organisms that are not plants, animals or fungi. There is no single feature such as evolutionary history or morphology common to all these organisms and they are unofficially placed under a separate kingdom called Protista.

Feb 14, 2022 · Protists are a diverse collection of organisms that do not fit into animal, plant, bacteria or fungi groups. While exceptions exist, they are primarily microscopic and made up of a single cell...

Protists are simple eukaryotic organisms that are neither plants nor animals or fungi. Protists are unicellular in nature but can also be found as a colony of cells. Most protists live in water, damp terrestrial environments or even as parasites. The term ‘Protista’ is derived from the Greek word “protistos”, meaning “ the very first “.

Feb 2, 2023 · Protists are the oldest eukaryotic microorganisms, having a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles. Since they do not wholly fit into other groups like plants, animals, bacteria, or fungi, they are categorized under a separate kingdom called Protista.

Mar 7, 2024 · Protista are primitive eukaryotic organisms and exhibit a wide range of diversity in size, shape, and life forms. They can be unicellular, multicellular, or colonial. Protista contains a defined nucleus and membrane-bound organelles, such as mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, and sometimes chloroplasts in autotrophs.

Aug 25, 2023 · Protist (biology definition): Any of a group of eukaryotic organisms belonging to the Kingdom Protista. Protists include: (1) protozoa , the animal-like protists, (2) algae , the plant-like protists, and (3) slime molds and water molds, the fungus-like protists.

Because the name “protist” serves as a catchall term for eukaryotic organisms that are not animal, plant, or fungi, it is not surprising that very few characteristics are common to all protists. On the other hand, familiar characteristics of plants and animals are foreshadowed in various protists.

Feb 28, 2025 · Protist - Diversity, Unicellular, Microscopic: Protists vary greatly in organization. Some are single-celled; others are syncytial (coenocytic; essentially a mass of cytoplasm); and still others are multicellular. (While protists may show multicellularity, they are never multitissued.)