creodont

[ kree-uh-dont ]

/ ˈkri əˌdɒnt /

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noun

any of a diverse group of extinct predatory mammals, from the Paleocene to Pleistocene epochs, that constituted the suborder Creodonta, of the order Carnivora, developing along evolutionary lines somewhat parallel to those of the ancestors of modern carnivores and typically having a stocky, doglike body and a long, low skull.

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Origin of creodont

<New Latin Creodonta (1875) name of the group, equivalent to cre- (<Greek kréas flesh) + -odont--odont + -a neuter plural ending

Words nearby creodont

crenellate, crenellated, crenshaw melon, crenulate, crenulation, creodont, Creole, creole continuum, creole-fish, creole language, creole tomato

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use creodont in a sentence

The group is believed to be derived from a creodont allied to the Eocene Palaeonictis (see Creodonta).
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 2|Various
The well-known plantigrade tread of bears is a primitive characteristic which has survived from their creodont ancestry.
The Elements of Geology|William Harmon Norton
The skull is described as being Creodont-like, but the dentition is that of the microdont modern Dogs.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia|Frank Evers Beddard
There are, however, other points of likeness which seem rather to point to a Creodont origin.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia|Frank Evers Beddard

It is a much-specialised Creodont, and therefore exhibits well the distinctive characters of the group.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia|Frank Evers Beddard

British Dictionary definitions for creodont

creodont

/ (ˈkriːəˌdɒnt) /

noun

any of a group of extinct Tertiary mammals some of which are thought to have been the ancestors of modern carnivores: order Carnivora

Word Origin for creodont

C19: from New Latin Creodonta, from Greek kreas flesh + odōn tooth

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

Scientific definitions for creodont

creodont

[ krē′ə-dŏnt′ ]

Any of various extinct carnivorous mammals of the order Creodonta of the Paleocene to the Pliocene Epochs. Creodonts had long, low skulls with crests to which chewing muscles were attached. They were the dominant carnivorous mammals for millions of years, and were once believed to be ancestral to modern carnivores.