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dinosaur
[ dahy-nuh-sawr ]
/ ˈdaɪ nəˌsɔr /
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noun
any chiefly terrestrial, herbivorous or carnivorous reptile of the extinct orders Saurischia and Ornithischia, from the Mesozoic Era, certain species of which are the largest known land animals.
something that is unwieldy in size, anachronistically outmoded, or unable to adapt to change: The old steel mill was a dinosaur that cost the company millions to operate.
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Words nearby dinosaur
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use dinosaur in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for dinosaur
dinosaur
/ (ˈdaɪnəˌsɔː) /
noun
any extinct terrestrial reptile of the orders Saurischia and Ornithischia, many of which were of gigantic size and abundant in the Mesozoic eraSee also saurischian, ornithischian Compare pterosaur, plesiosaur
a person or thing that is considered to be out of date
Derived forms of dinosaur
dinosaurian, adjectiveWord Origin for dinosaur
C19: from New Latin dinosaurus, from Greek deinos fearful + sauros lizard
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 dinosaur
dinosaur
[ dī′nə-sôr′ ]
Any of various extinct reptiles of the orders Saurischia and Ornithischia that flourished during the Mesozoic Era. Dinosaurs were carnivorous or herbivorous, dwelled mostly on land, and varied from the size of a small dog to the largest land animals that ever lived. One group of dinosaurs evolved into birds. See more at ornithischian saurischian. See Note at bird.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
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