'Photosynthesis' is Greek for 'assembling with light' — plants building complex molecules from sunbeams.
The process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods from carbon dioxide and water.
Coined from Greek 'phōs' (φῶς, light), genitive 'phōtos' (φωτός) + 'synthesis' (σύνθεσις, putting together, composition), from 'syn-' (together) + 'thesis' (θέσις, placing, setting), from 'tithenai' (τιθέναι, to place, to set), from PIE *dʰeh₁- (to put, to place, to set). Photosynthesis is literally 'putting together with light' — the process by which plants use light energy to assemble complex organic molecules from carbon dioxide and water. The term was likely coined by American botanist Charles Barnes in 1893, replacing the earlier '