Hyphomycete

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of filamentous fungus that reproduces by producing asexual spores on simple, unbranched or loosely branched stalks
2. Any member of the group of mould-like fungi whose spores are borne openly on separate spore-bearing threads rather than in fruiting bodies
3. A mould belonging to the former form class Hyphomycetes, which generates asexual spores directly from its hyphae without enclosing them

Etymology: Its first half comes from Greek "hyphē", meaning a web or woven fabric, and its second from "mykēs", meaning mushroom or fungus. Together they describe a fungus whose body is a web of fine threads. It is a scientific coinage built from classical roots, not a term any ancient Greek would have recognised. For many years, mycologists used the word for a large group of fungi that reproduce by spores formed on loose threads rather than inside fruiting bodies like mushrooms or cups. Later DNA studies showed that these fungi belonged to several unrelated lineages, so the group is no longer treated as a natural family, and the name has largely dropped out of formal classification.