mollusk

or mol·lusc

[mol-uh sk]

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.

Origin of mollusk

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

Related formsmol·lus·kan, mol·lus·can

[muh-luhs-kuh n] /məˈlʌs kən/, adjective, nounmol·lusk·like, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for mollusks

clam, abalone, snail, whelk, chiton, cuttlefish, limpet

Examples from the Web for mollusks

Historical Examples of mollusks

If Tartlet complains, it is because he does not like mollusks!
Godfrey Morgan
Jules Verne
The Mollusks and Brachiopods would afford us examples too numerous to mention.
Illogical Geology
George McCready Price
Among the mollusks we must note the evolution of the cephalopods.
The Elements of Geology
William Harmon Norton
Sponges, echinoderms, brachiopods, and mollusks were abundant.
The Elements of Geology
William Harmon Norton
The reason why some mollusks have thus lost their shells is clear enough.
The Evolutionist at Large
Grant Allen

Word Origin and History for mollusks

mollusk

1783, mollusque (modern spelling from 1839), from French mollusque, from Modern Latin Mollusca (see Mollusca), the phylum name. Related: Molluscuous; molluscan.

mollusks in Science

mollusk

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.

mollusks in Culture

mollusks

[(mol-uhsks)]

A phylum of invertebrates with soft bodies and muscular feet. Some mollusks also have hard shells. Oysters, clams, snails, slugs, octopuses, and squid are mollusks.