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alcyonarian

[al-see-uh-nair-ee-uh n]
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noun
  1. any anthozoan coelenterate of the subclass Alcyonaria, as corals and sea anemones, having the tentacles and other body parts in branches or segments of eight.
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adjective
  1. belonging or pertaining to the Alcyonaria.
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Origin of alcyonarian

1875–80; < New Latin Alcyonari(a) (< Greek alkyón(ion) a type of coral named from its resemblance to the nest of the kingfisher (alkyṓn) + Latin -āria -ary) + -an
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for alcyonarian

Historical Examples

  • Every Alcyonarian colony is developed by budding from a single parent zooid.

    Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 2

    Various

  • In the Alcyonarian forms belonging to this great group these tentacles are always eight in number, and fringed on both sides.

  • More interesting than the Annelids, however, are the Alcyonarian Actinozoa.