invertebrate
Americanadjective
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Zoology.
-
not vertebrate; without a backbone.
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of or relating to creatures without a backbone.
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-
without strength of character.
noun
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invertebrates
plural
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an invertebrate animal.
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a person who lacks strength of character.
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of invertebrate
From the New Latin word invertebrātus, dating back to 1820–30. See in- 3, vertebrate
Explanation
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. Invertebrate animals include fruit flies and sea sponges. Your backbone allows you to stand up straight, and it also allows you to be grouped with the other vertebrates: animals with backbones. Invertebrates are the opposite: they have no backbone. These are the two major groups of animals. Also, this word is used for people who are spineless in the sense of having no courage. You could say a coward acts in an invertebrate way. Whether it's a backbone-free animal or a courage-free person, all invertebrates lack spines.
Vocabulary lists containing invertebrate
Tyrannosaurus Lex(icon)
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Life Science: Organisms and Taxonomy
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Animals (Zoology) - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The invertebrate paleontology collections overseen by Drs. Cole and Wright at the Oklahoma Museum of Natural History contain more than a million specimens, and additional fossils are added every year.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
McLaren echoed the love for the marine invertebrate.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Researchers say these impacts make it especially important to assess the risks on Mediterranean islands, where many unique invertebrate and vertebrate species are found nowhere else.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026
By regularly monitoring the invertebrate life in rivers and burns, any deterioration in water quality can quickly be detected.
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
In organic chemistry, invertebrate zoology, and the inspired symmetry of Mendelian genetics, I have found a religion that serves.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
The eight years Darwin spent dismembering these tiny invertebrates at home took up more than 20 pages in Ms. Browne’s old version; they now receive barely four.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
They were the first invertebrates -- a broad group of animals including spiders, snails and worms -- shown to use celestial navigation for such long trips.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
"In order to understand how marine invertebrates are being impacted by things like climate change and how we can better protect these key elements of the ecosystem, we have to be able to identify them."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 25, 2026
Hannah Ellins, head of reptiles and invertebrates, said: "We do a lot of work with exotics, but it's cool being able to help our animals here."
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Offshore, an unfinished break wall was home to kelp beds and invertebrates.
From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
