What term describes organisms that do not require oxygen to grow?

The term that describes organisms that do not require oxygen to grow is anaerobic. Anaerobic organisms thrive in environments devoid of oxygen, and they have adapted metabolic processes to extract energy from nutrients without using oxygen. These organisms can be found in environments such as deep water sediments, the intestines of animals, and other places where oxygen is limited or absent.

In contrast, facultative organisms can grow in both the presence and absence of oxygen, using aerobic respiration when oxygen is available and switching to anaerobic methods when it is not. Aerobic organisms, on the other hand, require oxygen for survival and energy production through aerobic respiration. Autotrophic organisms are those that produce their own food typically through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis, but this term does not specifically pertain to their oxygen requirements.