fungus

fungus — noun

1. a type of living thing that gets its nutrients by absorbing them from dead or de

1.nounB2
Definition

a type of living thing that gets its nutrients by absorbing them from dead or decaying organic material, or from a living plant or animal — examples include mushrooms, mould, yeast, and mildew

Example

Eri found a strange fungus on an old log in the forest near her house.

find + fungus + on [surface]

The damp bathroom wall had patches of black fungus that needed to be removed.

common modifier: black fungus / green fungus

Common collocations
  • fungus grows on
  • fungus spreads
  • fungal infection
  • treat a fungus
  • cause a fungus
Synonyms
  • mould

    refers specifically to the fuzzy, often grey or green fungi that grow on food or damp surfaces; more informal and specific than 'fungus'

  • mushroom

    the visible, above-ground fruiting body of certain fungi; not all fungi produce mushrooms

  • yeast

    single-celled fungus used in baking, brewing, and fermentation; microscopic rather than visible to the naked eye

  • mildew

    a specific type of fungus that grows as a thin, whitish layer on plants or damp surfaces, often in warm, humid conditions

Usage Note

Plural can be 'fungi' (more common in scientific contexts) or 'funguses'. The word is used as both a countable noun ('a strange fungus') and an uncountable noun ('black fungus on the wall').

Common Mistakes

A mushroom is a type of plant.
A mushroom is a type of fungus.
Fungi are a separate biological kingdom, not a type of plant.

Word family

  • fungal
    adjectiveB2
  • fungicide
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Fungus is the broad biological term for an entire kingdom of organisms, while mould, mushroom, yeast, and mildew are all specific types of fungus. Mould refers to the fuzzy, often grey or green growth you see on old food or damp surfaces. Mushroom is the everyday name for the visible fruiting body of certain fungi — the part that looks like a stem with a cap. Yeast is a microscopic, single-celled fungus used in baking and brewing; you cannot see individual yeast cells without a microscope. Mildew is a thin, whitish fungus that grows on plants or bathroom tiles in warm, damp conditions. For example: 'The bread was covered in green mould, so she threw it away.' 'He picked a wild mushroom from the forest floor.' 'The recipe calls for active dry yeast.' 'The bathroom ceiling has mildew in the corners.'

mould ↗mushroom ↗yeast ↗mildew

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • type of fungus
  • patch of fungus

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinEnglish

The word 'fungus' comes directly from Latin 'fungus', meaning 'mushroom'. English borrowed it in the 1500s, at first referring only to mushrooms. By the 1800s scientists had expanded the term to cover the entire biological kingdom Fungi, which includes moulds, yeasts, mildews, and rusts.