living fossil

noun

1. an organism that is a living example of an otherwise extinct group and that has remained virtually unchanged in structure and function over a long period of time, as the coelacanth and the horseshoe crab.

living fossil

noun

1. an animal or plant, such as the coelacanth and ginkgo, belonging to a group most of whose members are extinct

Word History and Origins

Origin of living fossil¹

First recorded in 1920–25