# nekton

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. All organisms in the ocean that are capable of swimming independently of currents.

## Etymology
From German Nekton which was coined in 1890 by Ernst Haeckel. By surface analysis, Ancient Greek νηκτός (nēktós, “swimming”) + -on.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/nekton