Synonyms

mollusk

American

[mol-uhsk] / ˈmɒl əsk /

Or mollusc

noun

any invertebrate of the phylum Mollusca, typically having a calcareous shell of one, two, or more pieces that wholly or partly enclose the soft, unsegmented body, including the chitons, snails, bivalves, squids, and octopuses.

mollusk Scientific

/ mŏl′əsk /

Any of numerous invertebrate animals of the phylum Mollusca, usually living in water and often having a hard outer shell. They have a muscular foot, a well-developed circulatory and nervous system, and often complex eyes. Mollusks include gastropods (snails and shellfish), slugs, octopuses, squids, and the extinct ammonites. Mollusks appear in the fossil record in the early Cambrian Period, but it is not known from what group they evolved.

Other Word Forms

molluscan adjective
molluskan adjective
mollusklike adjective

Etymology

Origin of mollusk

1775–85; < French mollusque < New Latin Mollusca; Mollusca

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.

The mollusk lights up using bioluminescence when threatened to distract predators, researchers said.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 14, 2024

Porosity is known to affect the structural integrity of mollusk shells, making shells weaker and potentially more susceptible to damage.

From Science Daily • Apr. 17, 2024

Herman is confident that his father would be happy with his adoration for the mollusk, now chronicled in this beautiful cookbook.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2024

It wasn’t a worm, a mollusk, or a crustacean.

From Science Magazine • Sep. 21, 2023

Home plate was tilted up and stamped on top with a cracked mollusk fossil.

From "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary D. Schmidt

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023