geophagist

English

Etymology

From geo- +‎ -phagist.

Noun

geophagist (plural geophagists)

1. One who eats earth or earthlike substances.
   • 1919, Patrick Manson, Tropical Diseases, Chapter 45:

     Should chance so determine, it is finally transferred to the human alimentary canal, either in muddy drinking-water, or in the mud or dirt adhering to the hands or the food dishes of the agriculturist, the brick-maker, or other operative engaged in handling the soil; or, it may be, in earth deliberately eaten by the geophagist and children.

Related terms

• geophagia
• geophagism

 

See also

• pica

References

• “geophagist”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.