autotrophic

• POS: Adjective
• HYPHEN: au=to=troph=ic

CIDE DICTIONARY

autotrophic, a. [Auto- + trophic.].

•  Capable of self-nourishment; requiring only minerals for growth; using carbonate or carbon dioxide as a source of carbon and simple inorganic nitrogen as a nitrogen source; -- said of all plants in which photosynthetic activity takes place, and certain bacteria. It is opposed to parasitism or saprophytism.  [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
•  of or pertaining to an autotroph.  [WordNet 1.5]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

autotrophic, adj. Biol. able to form complex nutritional organic substances from simple inorganic substances such as carbon dioxide (cf. HETEROTROPHIC).

Etymology

AUTO- + Gk trophos feeder