Basidiosporous is an adjective used to describe fungi that produce spores from a specialized structure called a basidium. Synonyms for this term include basidiomycetous, basidiomycete, and basidiolichen. Basidiomycetous refers to any organism in the phylum Basidiomycota, which includes mushrooms, rusts, and smuts. Basidiomycete is a more general term for any fungus that produces basidia and basidiospores. Basidiolichen is a unique combination of a fungus and an alga, where the fungus is a basidiomycete. These synonyms are useful for scientists discussing different aspects of fungal biology and ecology.