Question

How do animal-like, funguslike, and plantlike protists obtain food?

Answer 1

Hint: A diverse set of species are protists. There are exceptions, they are mostly microscopic and unicellular, or consisting of a single cell. With a nucleus and specialized cellular machinery called organelles, the cells of protists are highly organized.

Complete answer:
A protist is not a fungus, herb, or animal. A common ancestor is likely to be shared by protists. The exclusion of other eukaryotes suggests that there is no natural group, or clade, of protists. There are many plant-like protists that get their energy from photosynthesis from sunlight, such as algae. Some of the protists, such as the slime molds, decompose rotting matter like a fungus. The animal-like protists have to "eat" food or ingest it. The classification of protists depends on how they eat, how they travel and how close they are to the other eukaryotic kingdoms (plant, animal and fungi). Autotrophs, heterotrophs or mixotrophs may be protists. Heterotrophs are animal-like protists. These protists must consume / absorb food from their environment in order to get food and nutrients. Maybe the most common form for heterotrophic protists is endocytosis, also called phagocytosis. It is when animal-like protists engulf or swallow their prey physically. For example, Amoebas are animal-like protists that, in order to get their nutrients, engulf their prey and break them down within their cell. Phagotrophs are also called these types of protists.
Therefore, animal-like protists are expected to consume food or absorb it.

Note:
Many protists are flagellates, and filter feeding may occur where flagellates find prey. Bacteria and other food particles can be engulfed by other protists. By extending their cell membrane to form a food vacuole around them and internally digesting them in a process called phagocytosis.