selenodont

[ si-lee-nuh-dont ]

/ sɪˈli nəˌdɒnt /

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adjective

having molar teeth with crowns formed of crescent-shaped cusps.

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Origin of selenodont

First recorded in 1880–85; selen(o)- + -odont

OTHER WORDS FROM selenodont

se·le·no·don·ty, noun

Words nearby selenodont

selenium cell, selenium rectifier, seleno-, selenocentric, selenodesy, selenodont, selenography, selenology, selenomorphology, selenotropism, selenous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use selenodont in a sentence

In the Pigs and their allies the crowns are bunodont, while in the more highly specialised Ruminants the crowns are selenodont.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds
It has, however, been shown that selenodont teeth always pass through an embryonic bunodont stage.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds
They have teeth which are not quite bunodont and not quite selenodont.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia|Frank Evers Beddard
These teeth have been termed buno-selenodont or buno-lophodont.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia|Frank Evers Beddard

While the molars have the selenodont character of other Pecora, the premolars are more adapted for cutting, with sharp edges.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia|Frank Evers Beddard

British Dictionary definitions for selenodont

selenodont

/ (sɪˈliːnəˌdɒnt) /

adjective

(of the teeth of certain mammals) having crescent-shaped ridges on the crowns, as in deer

noun

a mammal with selenodont teeth

Word Origin for selenodont

C19: from seleno- (moon-shaped) + -odont

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