retractile
[ri-trak-til]
adjective Zoology.
capable of being drawn back or in, as the head of a tortoise; exhibiting the power of retraction.
Origin of retractile
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for retractile
tentacle, paw, fingernail, talon, nipper, crook, hook, barb, spur, unguis, clapperclaw, fang, manus, grapnel, grappler, retractile, ungulaExamples from the Web for retractile
Historical Examples of retractile
Tentacular -um: retractile processes on the larvae of Lepidoptera.
Explanation of Terms Used in EntomologyJohn. B. Smith
The tongue of some Hymenoptera also is retractile within the mouth.
An Introduction to Entomology: Vol. III (of 4)William Kirby
In Stenus this organ is retractile, and consists of two joints.
An Introduction to Entomology: Vol. III (of 4)William Kirby
The vermiform and retractile tongue is also a most singular organ.
Reptiles and BirdsLouis Figuier
The claws are not retractile, or at most semi-retractile as in the Panda.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., MammaliaFrank Evers Beddard
retractile
adjective
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
retractile
[rĭ-trăk′tĭl, -tīl′]
adj.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.