Tridacna

American  

[trih-dak-nuh] / trɪˈdæk nə /

noun

1. a genus of giant clams inhabiting reefs in the South Pacific, attaining a diameter of 4 feet (1.2 meters) or more, and weighing over 500 pounds (227 kilograms).

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Etymology

Origin of Tridacna

First recorded in 1770–80; from New Latin, noun use of feminine of Latin tridacnus “requiring three bites,” from Greek trídaknos , equivalent to tri- “three” + dákn(ein) “to bite” + -os adjective suffix; see tri-

Example Sentences

The lab would switch from raising the colorful species to growing the biggest of the 12 species of giant clams, Tridacna gigas.

From National Geographic • Aug. 30, 2016

I did not know the name at the time, but I afterwards learned that it must have been a specimen of the Tridacna gigas.

From In the Eastern Seas by Kingston, William Henry Giles

Tridacna, trī-dak′na, n. a genus of bivalves, the giant clam, without the shell weighing 20 lb., with the shell so much even as 500 lb.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various

It was found imbedded in the seaweed and spongy-like substance that covers the Tridacna squamosa 13.

From Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia Performed between the years 1818 and 1822 — Volume 2 by King, Phillip Parker

The large shells of some species of Tridacna would be found vertically imbedded in the solid rock, in the position in which they lived.

From Coral Reefs by Darwin, Charles