arthropod

[ahr-thruh-pod]

noun

any invertebrate of the phylum Arthropoda, having a segmented body, jointed limbs, and usually a chitinous shell that undergoes moltings, including the insects, spiders and other arachnids, crustaceans, and myriapods.

adjective

Also ar·throp·o·dal

[ahr-throp-uh-dl] /ɑrˈθrɒp ə dl/, ar·throp·o·dan

[ahr-throp-uh-dn] /ɑrˈθrɒp ə dn/, ar·throp·o·dous

[ahr-throp-uh-duh s] /ɑrˈθrɒp ə dəs/. belonging or pertaining to the Arthropoda.

Origin of arthropod

1875–80; < New Latin Arthropoda; see arthro-, -pod

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for arthropods

tick, vermin, pest, mite, bee, butterfly, gnat, dragonfly, moth, grasshopper, spider, cockroach, termite, ant, mosquito, beetle, flea, aphid, ladybug, fly

Examples from the Web for arthropods

Historical Examples of arthropods

He thought he could find fifteen segments in all Arthropods.
Form and Function
E. S. (Edward Stuart) Russell
The arthropods in general were provided with a carapace; most of them were crustaceans.
Creative Evolution
Henri Bergson
He concludes, therefore, that the cephalaspids were arthropods, and not vertebrates.
The Origin of Vertebrates
Walter Holbrook Gaskell
Ectoparasites and other arthropods occurring in Texas bat caves.
The Biotic Associations of Cockroaches
Louis M. Roth
The Arthropods are animals of a high degree of organization.
Elementary Zoology, Second Edition
Vernon L. Kellogg

British Dictionary definitions for arthropods

arthropod

noun

any invertebrate of the phylum Arthropoda, having jointed limbs, a segmented body, and an exoskeleton made of chitin. The group includes the crustaceans, insects, arachnids, and centipedes

Derived Formsarthropodous (ɑːˈθrɒpədəs) or arthropodal, adjective

Word Origin for arthropod

C19 from NL, from Gk arthron joint + podus footed, from pous foot

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 arthropods

arthropod

1877, from Modern Latin Arthropoda, literally "those with jointed feet," biological classification of the phylum of segmented, legged invertebrates; see Arthropoda.

arthropods in Medicine

arthropod

[är′thrə-pŏd′]

n.

Any of numerous invertebrate animals of the phylum Arthropoda, including insects, crustaceans, arachnids, and myriapods.

arthropods in Science

arthropod

[är′thrə-pŏd′]

Any of numerous invertebrate animals of the phylum Arthopoda, characterized by an exoskeleton made of chitin and a segmented body with pairs of jointed appendages. Arthropods share many features with annelids and may have evolved from them in the Precambrian Era. Arthropods include the insects, crustaceans, arachnids, myriapods, and extinct trilobites, and are the largest phylum in the animal kingdom.

arthropods in Culture

arthropods

[(ahr-thruh-podz)]

A phylum, or major division of the animal kingdom. Arthropods are animals with jointed legs and segmented bodies, such as insects, spiders, centipedes, and crustaceans. There are more species of arthropods than of any other animal phylum.