ganoid

American  

[gan-oid] / ˈgæn ɔɪd /

adjective

1. 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.

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

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noun

1. a ganoid fish.

ganoid British  

/ ˈɡænɔɪd /

adjective

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

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

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noun

1. a ganoid fish

Other Word Forms

• subganoid
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of ganoid

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

Example Sentences

They differ from the ganoid fishes by having soft scales and a complete bony skeleton.

From Fast Nine or, A Challenge from Fairfield by Douglas, Alan

Dura Den, a glen near Cupar-Fife, famous for the number of ganoid fossil fishes entombed in its sandstone.

From The Nuttall Encyclopædia Being a Concise and Comprehensive Dictionary of General Knowledge by Nuttall, P. Austin

Osteol′epis, a genus of fossil ganoid fishes peculiar to the Old Red Sandstone, so called from the bony appearance of their scales; Osteol′oger, Osteol′ogist, one versed in osteology.—adjs.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various

The form of the "pectoral fins" was quite unique—these having the shape of two long, curved spines, somewhat like wings, covered by finely-tuberculated ganoid plates.

From The Ancient Life History of the Earth A Comprehensive Outline of the Principles and Leading Facts of Palæontological Science by Nicholson, Henry Alleyne

Megalichthys, meg-a-lik′this, n. a genus of extinct ganoid fishes.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various