edentate

[ ee-den-teyt ]

/ iˈdɛn teɪt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR edentate ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

belonging or pertaining to the Edentata, an order of New World mammals characterized by the absence of incisors and canines in the arrangement of teeth and comprising the armadillos, the sloths, and the South American anteaters.

toothless.

noun

an edentate mammal.

RELATED WORDS

sloth, aardvark, armadillo, anteater

Nearby words

Origin of edentate

1820–30; < Latin ēdentātus deprived of teeth, equivalent to ē- e-¹ + dent- (stem of dēns) tooth + -ātus -ate¹

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

Examples from the Web for edentate

Edentate animals, such as the sloth, are without teeth, or at least are without the incisors.
Orthography|Elmer W. Cavins
The palatines are edentate, but bear strong ridges throughout their lengths.
Neotropical Hylid Frogs, Genus Smilisca|William E. Duellman
I observe that Rudolphi distinctly refers to this edentate as the tamandua.
Parasites|T. Spencer Cobbold
Armadillo, rm-a-dil′o, n. a small American edentate quadruped, having its body armed with bands of bony plates:—pl.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various

No hylid genus is edentate, and none has either T-shaped terminal phalanges or the unusual dorsal spinules.
Systematic Status of a South American Frog, Allophryne ruthveni Gaige|John D. Lynch

British Dictionary definitions for edentate

edentate

/ (iːˈdɛnteɪt) /

noun

any of the placental mammals that constitute the order Edentata, which inhabit tropical regions of Central and South America. The order includes anteaters, sloths, and armadillos

adjective

of, relating to, or belonging to the order Edentata

Word Origin for edentate

C19: from Latin ēdentātus lacking teeth, from ēdentāre to render toothless, from e- out + dēns 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

Medicine definitions for edentate

edentate

[ ē-dĕn′tāt′ ]

adj.

Lacking teeth.

Science definitions for edentate

edentate

[ ē-dĕn′tāt′ ]

Adjective

Lacking teeth.

Noun

Any of various mammals belonging to the order Xenarthra (or Edentata), having no front teeth and few or no back teeth. The lumbar vertebrae have extra joints, which add support during digging. Sloths, armadillos, and anteaters are edentates.