life form
Any living creature
A life form is any living organism or entity.
The term appears most often in scientific and science-fiction contexts, where it emphasizes the diversity of possible biological configurations: The probe detected no life forms on the planet's surface.
Life form suggests a neutral, taxonomically agnostic way of referring to living things—useful when the creature in question might not fit familiar categories like animal or plant.
Finest taxonomic rank
- creatureLiving, sentient entity
- organismLiving biological entity
- beingExisting as something
- entityIndependent existing thing
microbe · bacteria · virus · fungus · plant · animal · cell · multicellular
Non-native being
- ETAlien abbreviation
- martianNative of fourth planet
- xenomorphForeign biological entity
- astrobiologyStudy of cosmic organisms
SETI · exoplanet · biosignature · sentient · intelligent · humanoid · first contact · UFO
Species changing over generations
- adaptationFitting to new conditions
- metabolismCellular nutrient conversion
- reproductionCopying or procreation
- DNAHereditary code molecule
genetics · taxonomy · classification · biodiversity · ecosystem · habitat · survival · mutation
species
Finest taxonomic rank
entity · microbe · bacteria · virus · fungus · plant · animal · cell · multicellular · unicellular
alien
Non-native being
astrobiology · SETI · exoplanet · biosignature · sentient · intelligent · humanoid · first contact · UFO · extraterrestrial
evolution
Species changing over generations
- adaptationFitting to new conditions
- metabolismCellular nutrient conversion
- reproductionCopying or procreation
DNA · genetics · taxonomy · classification · biodiversity · ecosystem · habitat · survival · mutation · natural selection
kingdom
Monarch's ruled territory
eukaryote · prokaryote · genus · order · family · Linnaean · binomial · nomenclature · clade · phylogeny