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catarrhine

[ kat-uh-rahyn, ‐rin ]
/ ˈkæt əˌraɪn, ‐rɪn /
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adjective
belonging or pertaining to the subdivision of simians that comprises Old World monkeys and apes, including humans.
noun
a catarrhine animal.
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Compare platyrrhine.

Origin of catarrhine

First recorded in 1860–65; from New Latin Catarrhīnī, plural of catarrhīnus, from Greek katárrhīn “hook-nosed,” equivalent to kata- “down” + -rhīn “-nosed,” adjective derivative of rhī́s “nose, snout”; see origin at cata-, rhino-; cf. haplorhine, platyrrhine, strepsirrhine

Words nearby catarrhine

cataplexy, catapult, cataract, catarrh, catarrhal fever, catarrhine, catastasis, catastrophe, catastrophe theory, catastrophic, catastrophism
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use catarrhine in a sentence

  • The platyrrhine and catarrhine monkeys have their primitive ancestor among extinct forms of the Lemuridae.

    Evolution in Modern Thought|Ernst Haeckel

  • Man is descended directly from one series of extinct Catarrhine ancestors.

    The Last Link|Ernst Haeckel

  • Catarrhine monkeys have existed, we know with certainty, since the Miocene.

    The Last Link|Ernst Haeckel

  • As they belong to the Catarrhine group, their nose has a narrow partition between the nostrils, which are directed downwards.

    A Hand-book to the Primates, Volume 2 (of 2)|Henry O. Forbes

British Dictionary definitions for catarrhine

catarrhine
/ (ˈkætəˌraɪn) /
adjective
(of apes and Old World monkeys) having the nostrils set close together and opening to the front of the face
Also: leptorrhine (of humans) having a thin or narrow nose
noun
an animal or person with this characteristic
Compare platyrrhine

Word Origin for catarrhine

C19: from New Latin Catarrhina (for sense 1), all ultimately from Greek katarrhin having a hooked nose, from kata- down + rhis nose
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
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