Hermaphrodite << hur MAF ruh dyt >> is an animal with both male and female organs of reproduction. Some flatworms and segmented worms are normally hermaphrodites, as are some echinoderms and mollusks. 
Although some hermaphrodites fertilize their own eggs, most do not. Some show successive hermaphroditism, in which the two sets of organs produce eggs and sperm at different times. In others, the positions of the sex organs keep the animals from fertilizing themselves. For example, the common earthworm has active male and female organs located in different parts of the body. This allows two worms to fertilize each other, but prevents them from fertilizing themselves.
In vertebrates (animals with a backbone), hermaphroditism is unusual. The organs and functions of one or both sexes usually develop imperfectly in such individuals. The term hermaphrodite should not be used for human beings, as it is considered inaccurate and offensive. People with physical or genetic characteristics of both sexes are known as intersex.
