Troglophile

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An animal or plant that makes its home in caves and has adapted to that underground environment
2. A creature that inhabits caves as its natural habitat, having evolved characteristics suited to subterranean life
3. Any organism that dwells permanently within caves, showing adaptations to the absence of light and stable conditions found underground

Etymology: "Troglophile" is a modern scientific coinage, built from two classical Greek elements rather than inherited from antiquity. The first part, "troglo-", comes from Ancient Greek "trōglē," meaning a hole or cave, the root that also gives "troglodyte," a term for a cave dweller. The second part, "-phile," comes from Ancient Greek "phílos," meaning loving or friendly, which passed into English through Latin "-phila" and the suffix "-phile." Put together, the parts literally mean "cave-lover." Biologists use the word for animals that prefer caves but can also live elsewhere, a category distinct from troglobites, which are confined to subterranean habitats. The pattern "-phile" appears in many scientific and everyday terms, such as "bibliophile" and "Anglophile," all following the same model of a Greek root combined with "-phile" to name a fondness.

Synonyms: cave lover, spelunker