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ornithorhynchus

[awr-nuh-thuh-ring-kuh s]
noun
  1. the platypus.
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Origin of ornithorhynchus

1790–1800; < New Latin: genus name, equivalent to ornitho- ornitho- + -rhynchus < Greek rhýnchos bill
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for ornithorhynchus

Historical Examples

  • Sometimes, as in the Ornithorhynchus, the meniscus is absent.

    Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 15, Slice 5

    Various

  • Here we find the curious egg-laying mammal, Ornithorhynchus.

  • In Ornithorhynchus the zygomatic arch is much stouter than in Echidna.

    The Vertebrate Skeleton

    Sidney H. Reynolds

  • The acetabulum is perforated in Echidna as in birds, but not in Ornithorhynchus.

    The Vertebrate Skeleton

    Sidney H. Reynolds

  • The interclavicle is absent from all mammals except Echidna and Ornithorhynchus.

    Dragons of the Air

    H. G. Seeley

British Dictionary definitions for ornithorhynchus

ornithorhynchus

noun
  1. the technical name for duck-billed platypus
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Word Origin

C19: New Latin, from ornitho- + Greek rhunkhos bill
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