Koinobites

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Describes a parasitic insect larva that lets its host continue feeding, growing and moulting for a time after it has been attacked
2. Refers to certain parasitoid wasps or flies whose young develop slowly inside a host that remains alive and active during the process
3. Denotes parasitoid organisms that delay killing their host, allowing it to keep living and developing while the parasite feeds within it

Etymology: Koinobites is a plural form in the sense of "the monks who live in community," and its root is the same as the English "cenobite." The word comes from Late Greek "koinobios," a compound of "koinos," meaning "common" or "shared," and "bios," meaning "life." Its literal sense is "one who lives a common life." The contrast it names is with hermits. Early Christian monasticism in Egypt and Palestine had two broad forms: anchorites, who withdrew alone into the desert, and koinobites, who lived together under a shared rule, eating, praying and working in common. Writers used the term to distinguish these communal monks from the solitary ones, and the emphasis on shared life is built into its parts. The word is a technical term from the history of monasticism rather than an everyday one. Its Greek elements are ordinary words, so the meaning is transparent once the pieces are known: "koinos" also gives English "koine," the common dialect of Greek.