carnassial

American  

[kahr-nas-ee-uhl] / kɑrˈnæs i əl /

adjective

1. (of teeth) adapted for shearing flesh.

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noun

1. a carnassial tooth, especially the last upper premolar or the first lower molar tooth of certain carnivores.

carnassial British  

/ kɑːˈnæsɪəl /

adjective

1. zoology of, relating to, or designating the last upper premolar and first lower molar teeth of carnivores, which have sharp edges for tearing flesh

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noun

1. a carnassial tooth

Etymology

Origin of carnassial

1840–50; < French carnassi ( er ) flesh-eating (< Provençal, equivalent to carnasse augmentative derivative of carn flesh, meat (< Latin carn-, stem of carō ) + -ier -ary ) + -al ¹

Example Sentences

Creodont fossils have long, narrow skulls similar in shape to a coyote’s, and carnassial molars, which cut through meat and bone like a pair of sharp scissors.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 15, 2023

Some modern carnivores also have carnassial teeth; evolution resulted in teeth adapted to do the same task for both groups, although they are not related.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 15, 2023

The second is strong and essentially carnassial; it is compressed laterally and obliquely placed.

From Natural History of the Mammalia of India and Ceylon by Sterndale, Robert Armitage

I.—Left upper sectorial or carnassial teeth of Carnivora.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 4 "Carnegie Andrew" to "Casus Belli" by Various

From a "carnivorous" alimentary canal, then, you can infer with certainty that the animal possessed carnassial teeth and the other structural peculiarities of carnivorous animals, e.g., the peculiar coronoid process of the mandible.

From Form and Function A Contribution to the History of Animal Morphology by E. S. (Edward Stuart) Russell