parasitic

Connected with a living thing that lives on or inside another, or someone who unfairly depends on others.

• The test found a parasitic infection.
• Scientists studied the insect's parasitic life cycle.
• The novel explores the family's parasitic relationship with its wealthy neighbors.

Common phrases: parasitic infection, parasitic disease, parasitic relationship

Living on or inside another living thing and taking food from it.

• Parasitic worms live inside animals.
• This parasitic plant takes nutrients from a tree.
• Some parasitic insects feed on their hosts' blood.

Common phrases: parasitic worm, parasitic plant, parasitic organism

Taking money, support, or other benefits from others without giving anything back.

• Their relationship became parasitic.
• He enjoyed a parasitic lifestyle at his parents' expense.
• The writer attacked wealthy owners for their parasitic behavior.

Similar words: exploitative, freeloading

Common phrases: parasitic relationship, parasitic lifestyle, parasitic class

Depending on another idea of the same kind for its meaning or existence.

• The two concepts have a parasitic relationship.
• His account of error is parasitic on his account of truth.
• The argument's meaning is parasitic on assumptions introduced earlier.

How to use it: parasitic on something (This concept is parasitic on an earlier theory of meaning.)

Similar words: dependent, derivative

Opposites: independent

Common phrases: parasitic on something, parasitic concept, parasitic theory

An unplanned electrical element that affects a circuit but is not shown in its design drawing.

• The model includes one parasitic.
• These parasitics affect the circuit at high frequencies.
• An unexpected parasitic changed the signal's shape.

Similar words: parasitic element

Common phrases: circuit parasitic, unwanted parasitic, extract a parasitic