Asteroidea

American  

[as-tuh-roi-dee-uh] / ˌæs təˈrɔɪ di ə /

noun

1. the class comprising the starfishes.

---

Etymology

Origin of Asteroidea

< New Latin, equivalent to Aster ( ias ) a starfish genus (< Greek asterías starry, derivative of astḗr star ) + -oidea -oidea

Example Sentences

The most well-known echinoderms are members of class Asteroidea, or sea stars.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Perhaps the best-known echinoderms are members of the class Asteroidea, or sea stars.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

To this point we shall recur; palaeontology, though it suggests a clue, does not furnish an actual link either between Echinoidea and Asteroidea, or between those classes and Pelmatozoa.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 10 "Echinoderma" to "Edward" by Various

Turning to fossil Asteroidea, we find the earlier ophiurids scarcely distinguishable from the asterids, while in the alternation of the ambulacrals, which undoubtedly correspond to the flooring-plates of Edrioaster, both groups approach the Pelmatozoan type.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 10 "Echinoderma" to "Edward" by Various