The building blocks of English

Affixes

echin(o)-

Spiny.

Greek ekhinos, hedgehog, sea urchin.

The echinoderms (Greek derma, skin) belong to a group which includes starfishes, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers. An echinococcus (Greek kokkos, seed, grain) is a parasitic tapeworm found in the intestines of dogs, whose intermediate stage (consisting of hooked cysts) infects sheep, pigs, and sometimes humans, and causes the disease echinococcosis. An echinacea is a plant of the daisy family, whose flowers have a raised cone-like centre which appears to consist of soft spines.