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zoea

[zoh-ee-uh]
noun, plural zo·e·ae [zoh-ee-ee] /zoʊˈi i/, zo·e·as. Zoology.
  1. any of the free-swimming larva of certain crustaceans, as the crab, having rudimentary legs and a spiny carapace.
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Origin of zoea

1820–30; < New Latin, equivalent to Greek zō(ḗ) life + New Latin -ea -ea
Related formszo·e·al, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for zoea

Historical Examples

  • It was called a zoea; but you can call it a Crab caterpillar or larva.

    On the Seashore

    R. Cadwallader Smith

  • The maggot is the larva of the fly, and the zoea is the larva of the Crab.

    On the Seashore

    R. Cadwallader Smith

  • With crowds of its brothers and sisters, the zoea kicks about on the surface of the sea.

    On the Seashore

    R. Cadwallader Smith

  • You ask about the skipping of the Zoea stage in fresh-water decapods: is this an illustration of acceleration?

  • As an illustration of this metamorphosis, we give figures of the Zoea Taurus in two states, viz., Fig.

    The Ocean World:

    Louis Figuier

British Dictionary definitions for zoea

zoea

zoaea

noun plural zoeae or zoaeae (zəʊˈiːiː) or zoeas or zoaeas
  1. the free-swimming larva of a crab or related crustacean, which has well-developed abdominal appendages and may bear one or more spines
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Word Origin

C20: New Latin, from Greek zōē life
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