dryopithecine

[ drahy-oh-pith-uh-seen, -sahyn, -puh-thee-sin, -sahyn ]

/ ˌdraɪ oʊˈpɪθ əˌsin, -ˌsaɪn, -pəˈθi sɪn, -saɪn /

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noun

(sometimes initial capital letter) an extinct ape of the genus Dryopithecus, known from Old World Miocene fossils.

adjective

of or relating to this ape.

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Origin of dryopithecine

First recorded in 1945–50; Dryopithec(us) + -ine¹

Words nearby dryopithecine

dry mop, dry mounting, dry nurse, dry offset, dryomorph, dryopithecine, Dryopithecus, dryout, dry plate, drypoint, dry puddling

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

British Dictionary definitions for dryopithecine

dryopithecine

/ (ˌdraɪəʊˈpɪθəˌsiːn) /

noun

any extinct Old World ape of the genus Dryopithecus, common in Miocene and Pliocene times: thought to be the ancestors of modern apes

Word Origin for dryopithecine

C20: from New Latin Dryopithēcus, from Greek drus tree + pithēkos ape

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 dryopithecine

dryopithecine

[ drī′ō-pĭth′ĭ-sēn′ ]

An extinct ape of the genus Dryopithecus, known from fossil remains of the Miocene and Pliocene Epochs in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is believed to be an ancestor of the anthropoid apes and humans.