寄居虫

Japanese

Kanji in this term
寄	居	虫
き Grade: 5	きょ Grade: 5	むし Grade: 1
on'yomi		kun'yomi

Alternative spelling
寄居蟲 (kyūjitai)

Etymology

By surface analysis, 寄(き)居(きょ) (kikyo, “to live in someone else's house”) + 虫(むし) (mushi, “bug”). Compare Okinawan 寄居虫 (aaman).

Noun

寄(き)居(きょ)虫(むし) or 寄居虫(キキョムシ) • (kikyomushi)

hermit crab

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as キキョムシ (kikyomushi).

Synonyms

宿(やど)借(か)り (yadokari)