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crossopterygian

[kro-sop-tuh-rij-ee-uh n]

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noun

any fish of the group Crossopterygii, extinct except for the coelacanth, regarded as being ancestral to amphibians and other land vertebrates.

adjective

pertaining to or resembling a crossopterygian.

Origin of crossopterygian

1860–65; < New Latin Crossopterygi(i) group name (< Greek kross(oí) tassels, fringe + -o- -o- + pterýgi(on) little wing or fin, equivalent to pteryg- (stem of pterýx) wing, fin + -ion diminutive suffix) + -an

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

Examples from the Web for crossopterygian

Historical Examples of crossopterygian

These are found in the garpike and in many genera of extinct Ganoid and Crossopterygian fishes.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)
David Starr Jordan
In every modern Dipnoan, Crossopterygian, and Ganoid the air-bladder has an effective pneumatic duct.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)
David Starr Jordan
The Ganoid differs from the Crossopterygian in having the basal elements of the paired fins small and concealed within the flesh.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)
David Starr Jordan
It is not unlikely that the Crossopterygian gave rise to Amphibian and Dipnoan alike.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)
David Starr Jordan
In the archaic tail, enameled scales, and cartilaginous skeleton the Crossopterygian shows its affinity with its Dipnoan ancestry.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)
David Starr Jordan

British Dictionary definitions for crossopterygian

crossopterygian

noun

any bony fish of the subclass Crossopterygii, having fleshy limblike pectoral fins. The group, now mostly extinct, contains the ancestors of the amphibiansSee also coelacanth

adjective

of, relating to, or belonging to the Crossopterygii

Word Origin for crossopterygian

C19: from New Latin Crossopterygiī, from Greek krossoi fringe, tassels + pterugion a little wing, from pterux wing

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

crossopterygian in Science

crossopterygian

[krŏ-sŏp′tə-rĭj′ē-ən]

Any of a mostly extinct group of lobe-finned fishes of the order Crossopterygii, whose only living member is the coelacanth. One group of crossopterygians is thought to have evolved into terrestrial vertebrates beginning in the Devonian Period. See more at coelacanth.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.