bivalve

[ bahy-valv ]

/ ˈbaɪˌvælv /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bivalve ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Also called lamellibranch. Zoology. any mollusk, as the oyster, clam, scallop, or mussel, of the class Bivalvia, having two shells hinged together, a soft body, and lamellate gills.

adjective

Botany. having two valves, as a seedcase.

Zoology. having two shells, usually united by a hinge.

having two similar parts hinged together.

RELATED WORDS

ripple, mollusk, wrinkle, pucker

Nearby words

biuret, biuret reaction, bivalence, bivalent, bivalent chromosome, bivalve, bivane, bivariate, biventral, bivinyl, bivoltine

Origin of bivalve

First recorded in 1670–80; bi-¹ + valve

Related forms

bi·val·vu·lar

[bahy-val-vyuh-ler] /baɪˈvæl vyə lər/, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for bivalve

But a great number of the bivalve Testacea, and many also of the turbinated univalves, burrow in sand or mud.
Principles of Geology|Charles Lyell
They are voracious eaters, living principally on bivalve mollusks.
Birds and Nature Vol. 9 No. 4 [April 1901]|Various
Bivalve -ed: applied to mouth parts consisting of two parts or valves united to form a tube.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology|John. B. Smith
Yes, enough to tell a bivalve when I see one: should like to have a ‘dozen fried’ before me now.
The Island Home|Richard Archer

The Ostracoda have the body enclosed in a bivalve shell-covering, and normally unsegmented.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 6|Various

British Dictionary definitions for bivalve

bivalve

/ (ˈbaɪˌvælv) /

noun

Also: pelecypod, lamellibranch any marine or freshwater mollusc of the class Pelecypoda (formerly Bivalvia or Lamellibranchia), having a laterally compressed body, a shell consisting of two hinged valves, and gills for respiration. The group includes clams, cockles, oysters, and mussels

adjective

Also: pelecypod, lamellibranch of, relating to, or belonging to the Pelecypoda

Also: bivalvate (baɪˈvælveɪt) biology having or consisting of two valves or similar partsa bivalve seed capsule

Derived Forms

bivalvular, adjective

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

Science definitions for bivalve

bivalve

[ bī′vălv′ ]

Any of various mollusks of the class Bivalvia, having a shell consisting of two halves hinged together. Clams, oysters, scallops, and mussels are bivalves. The class Bivalvia is also called Pelecypoda, and was formerly called Lamellibranchia. Compare univalve.