ammonite

[am-uh-nahyt]

noun

the coiled, chambered fossil shell of an ammonoid.

Origin of ammonite

1700–10; < New Latin Ammonites < Medieval Latin (cornū) Ammōn(is) (literally, horn of Ammon) + -ītes -ite¹; fossil so called from its resemblance to the horn of Jupiter Ammon

Related formsam·mo·nit·ic

[am-uh-nit-ik] /ˌæm əˈnɪt ɪk/, adjectiveam·mon·i·toid

[uh-mon-i-toid] /əˈmɒn ɪˌtɔɪd/, adjective

ammonite

[am-uh-nahyt]

noun

a nitrogenous mixture consisting chiefly of dried animal fats, usually obtained from livestock carcasses, and used as a fertilizer.

Origin of ammonite

First recorded in 1600–10; ammo(nium) + nit(rat)e

Ammonite

[am-uh-nahyt]

noun

an inhabitant of Ammon.

adjective

of or relating to the Ammonites.

Origin of Ammonite

First recorded in 1605–15; Ammon + -ite¹

Related formsAm·mon·it·ish, adjectivepre-Am·mon·ite, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for ammonite

Historical Examples of ammonite

Ishmael may have been the son or grandson of some Ammonite princess.
The Expositor's Bible
F. W. Farrar
The ammonite stem branched into a most luxuriant variety of forms.
The Elements of Geology
William Harmon Norton
They are already scratching the ambitious itch of Tobiah, the Ammonite.
A King of Tyre
James M. Ludlow
Tobiah, the Ammonite, was related to several Judan families.
History of the Jews, Vol. I (of 6)
Heinrich Graetz
In the ornaments of the doorway we see the ammonite and medlar.
The Cathedrals of Great Britain
P. H. Ditchfield

British Dictionary definitions for ammonite

ammonite

noun

any extinct marine cephalopod mollusc of the order Ammonoidea, which were common in Mesozoic times and generally had a coiled partitioned shell. Their closest modern relative is the pearly nautilus
the shell of any of these animals, commonly occurring as a fossil

Derived Formsammonitic (ˌæməˈnɪtɪk), adjective

Word Origin for ammonite

C18: from New Latin Ammōnītēs, from Medieval Latin cornū Ammōnis, literally: horn of Ammon

ammonite

noun

an explosive consisting mainly of ammonium nitrate with smaller amounts of other substances, such as TNT
a nitrogenous fertilizer made from animal wastes

Word Origin for ammonite

C20: from ammo (nium) + ni (tra) te

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for ammonite

"cephalopod mollusk," 1758, from French (Breyn, 1732), "better established" [Century Dictionary] by French zoologist Jean Guillaume Bruguière (c.1750-1798) in 1789, from Medieval Latin (cornu) Ammonis "horn of Ammon," the Egyptian god of life and reproduction, who was depicted with ram's horns, which the fossils resemble. The resemblance also was noted in ancient times.

ammonite in Science

ammonite

[ăm′ə-nīt′]

Any of the ammonoids belonging to the order Ammonitida and living during the Jurassic and the Cretaceous Periods. Ammonites had a thick, very ornamental chambered shell with highly defined, wavy sutures between the chambers.