ganoid

[ gan-oid ]

/ ˈgæn ɔɪd /

adjective

of or relating to the Ganoidei, a group of mostly extinct fishes characterized by hard, bony scales, the living species of which include the paddlefishes, sturgeons, and gars.

(of the scale of a fish) having a smooth, shiny surface of ganoin or a similar substance.

noun

a ganoid fish.

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Origin of ganoid

1830–40; < French ganoïde < Greek gán(os) brightness + -oïde -oid

OTHER WORDS FROM ganoid

sub·gan·oid, adjective

Words nearby ganoid

ganister, ganja, gannet, gannett, ganof, ganoid, ganoin, ganser's syndrome, gansevoort, gansey, gansu

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for ganoid

Louis Agassiz distinguished four kinds of scales—placoid, ganoid, cycloid and ctenoid.
Zoology: The Science of Animal Life|Ernest Ingersoll
The distinctions between cycloid and ctenoid scales, between placoid and ganoid fishes, are vague, and can hardly be maintained.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 14, Slice 3|Various
Dura Den, a glen near Cupar-Fife, famous for the number of ganoid fossil fishes entombed in its sandstone.
The Nuttall Encyclopaedia|Edited by Rev. James Wood
They are not, however, relatively so large as in other Ganoid forms, more especially the Chondrostei and Polypterus.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume 1|Francis Maitland Balfour

Another American ganoid is Amia calva, the dog-fish or bow-fin, which is very numerous in Western rivers.
With the World's Great Travellers, Volume 1|Various

British Dictionary definitions for ganoid

ganoid

/ (ˈɡænɔɪd) /

adjective

(of the scales of certain fishes) consisting of an inner bony layer and an outer layer of an enamel-like substance (ganoin)

denoting fishes, including the sturgeon and bowfin, having such scales

noun

a ganoid fish

Word Origin for ganoid

C19: from French ganoïde, from Greek ganos brightness + -oid

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