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ostracod

[os-truh-kod]
noun
  1. seed shrimp.
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Origin of ostracod

1860–65; < New Latin Ostracoda name of the subclass < Greek ostrakṓdēs, equivalent to óstrak(on) shell, tile (see ostracize) + -ōdēs -ode1
Related formsos·tra·co·dan [os-truh-kohd-n] /ˌɒs trəˈkoʊd n/, os·tra·co·dous, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for ostracod

Historical Examples

  • The most beautiful examples of luminous secretions are found among the ostracod crustacea.

    The Nature of Animal Light

    E. Newton Harvey

  • From the superficial resemblance of the shell to that of an Ostracod, this is known as the cypris stage.

    The Life of Crustacea

    William Thomas Calman

  • Like the ostracod, the adult cirriped bears little external resemblance to the trilobite.

  • Animals which do not adhere are generally those (such as ostracod crustacea) which have a hard integument without weak spots.

British Dictionary definitions for ostracod

ostracod

noun
  1. any minute crustacean of the mainly freshwater subclass Ostracoda, in which the body is enclosed in a transparent two-valved carapace
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Derived Formsostracodan (ˌɒstrəˈkəʊdən) or ostracodous, adjective

Word Origin

C19: via New Latin from Greek ostrakōdēs having a shell, from ostrakon shell
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