pentadactyl

[ pen-tuh-dak-tl, -til ]

/ ˌpɛn təˈdæk tl, -tɪl /

adjective

having five digits on each hand or foot.

having five fingerlike projections or parts.

Nearby words

penta-, pentachloronitrobenzene, pentachlorophenol, pentacle, pentad, pentadactyl, pentadecagon, pentaerythritol, pentaerythritol tetranitrate, pentagon, pentagon papers

Origin of pentadactyl

1655–65; < Latin pentadactylus < Greek pentadáktylos. See penta-, -dactyl

Related forms

pen·ta·dac·tyl·ism, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pentadactyl

In the former the axis of the foot remained in the middle of the third digit, as in the pentadactyl foot.
Darwin, and After Darwin (Vol. 1 and 3, of 3)|George John Romanes

British Dictionary definitions for pentadactyl

pentadactyl

/ (ˌpɛntəˈdæktɪl) /

adjective

(of the limbs of amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals) consisting of an upper arm or thigh, a forearm or shank, and a hand or foot bearing five digits

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