Protists are a diverse group of eukaryotes that are primarily single-celled and microscopic and exhibit a wide variety of shapes and life strategies.

Protist, any member of a group of diverse eukaryotic, predominantly unicellular microscopic organisms. They may share certain morphological and physiological characteristics with …

Eukaryotic organisms that did not fit the criteria for the kingdoms Animalia, Fungi, or Plantae historically were called protists and were classified into the kingdom Protista.

Aug 5, 2025 · The term “protist” might sound like a placeholder—and in many ways, it is. It’s not a name for a single group of closely related organisms, but rather a convenient bin for …

Dec 23, 2025 · Have you ever examined pond water under a microscope? Did you see small organisms gliding around? If so, you saw a protist. Protists make up a large group of …

Nov 25, 2025 · Many different naming schemes were used over the last couple of centuries, but it has become the most common practice to refer to eukaryotes that are not land plants, …

: any of a kingdom of organisms that resemble plants or animals or both, are one-celled and sometimes colonial or less often many-celled, and that typically include the protozoans, most …

The first is a phylogeny-based definition; that protists are all eukaryotes that are not animals, fungi, or land plants (Embryophyta). The second concept includes various definitions based on …

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 …

Nov 7, 2025 · 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 …