What does "hydrophilic" mean?

Having an affinity for water; able to absorb, or be wetted by water; water-loving.

What is a synonym for "hydrophilic"?

Common synonyms include: deliquescent, hygroscopic, water loving, water-loving.

adj

adj ·4 syllables ·Rare ·Advanced level

Adjective

1
Having an affinity for water; able to absorb, or be wetted by water; water-loving.

Adjective

1
having a strong affinity for water; tending to dissolve in, mix with, or be wetted by water wordnet

"Oil is an amphipathic molecule as it has both hydrophobic and hydrophilic characteristics."

From hydro- + -philic.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.