pentadactyl

American  

[pen-tuh-dak-tl, -til] / ˌpɛn təˈdæk tl, -tɪl /

adjective

1. having five digits on each hand or foot.

2. having five fingerlike projections or parts.

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pentadactyl British  

/ ˌpɛntəˈdæktɪl /

adjective

1. (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

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Other Word Forms

• pentadactylism noun

Etymology

Origin of pentadactyl

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

Example Sentences

Laced with opportunities for individual improvisation, “2.6 Pentadactyl” veered between unanimity of movement and a circling constellation of sound and color, creating an aural feast.

From Washington Post

Henry Threadgill’s “2.6 Pentadactyl,” commissioned by the Kennedy Center and University of Chicago and written for Imani, had its Washington premiere.

From Washington Post

And structures such as the pentadactyl limb still follow an ancient body plan that ensures that no living vertebrate has more than five digits.

From BBC

Our arms and legs are pentadactyl limbs - they have five digits.

From BBC

A fundamental constraint prevents limbless subterranean animals from remaining viable above a body size of a metre or so, and Graboidus and other large amphisbaenians have seemingly re-evolved giant, pentadactyl clawed forelimbs for use in locomotion and prey dismemberment. is parthenogenetic and viviparous.

From Scientific American