spinose
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- nonspinose adjective
- nonspinosely adverb
- nonspinosity noun
- spinosely adverb
- spinosity noun
- subspinose adjective
Etymology
Origin of spinose
From the Latin word spīnōsus, dating back to 1650–60. See spine, -ose 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Cryptic morphologies and elaborate spinose ornament have evolved in step with these predation pressures, the most extreme example being represented by the giant pholidomeleons.
From Scientific American • Apr. 1, 2013
About a week later the eggs hatch into small spinose caterpillars which begin feeding upon the leaves near by.
From Butterflies Worth Knowing by Weed, Clarence M.
This family commenced its existence in the Upper Silurian with the genus Chonetes, distinguished by its spinose hinge-margin.
From The Ancient Life History of the Earth A Comprehensive Outline of the Principles and Leading Facts of Palæontological Science by Nicholson, Henry Alleyne
Caudal Appendages.—I can only say that they are spinose on their summits.
From A Monograph on the Sub-class Cirripedia With Figures of all the Species. by Darwin, Charles
Leaves mostly rigid and more or less spinose.
From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Gray, Asa
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
