opisthobranch

American

[uh-pis-thuh-brangk] / əˈpɪs θəˌbræŋk /

Also opisthobranchiate

noun

any gastropod mollusk of the order Opisthobranchia, as the sea slugs, sea butterflies, and sea hares, characterized by a vestigial or absent mantle and shell and two pairs of tentacles.

adjective

of or relating to the opisthobranches.

opisthobranch British

/ əˈpɪsθəˌbræŋk /

noun

any marine gastropod of the class Opisthobranchia (or Opisthobranchiata ), in which the shell is reduced or absent: includes the pteropods, sea hares, and nudibranchs

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of opisthobranch

1850–55; < New Latin Opisthobranchia the subclass; see opistho-, branchia

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