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BIVALVE

 - 5 dictionary results

bi⋅valve

  [bahy-valv]
Use BIVALVE in a Sentence
–noun
1. Also called lamellibranch. Zoology. any mollusk, as the oyster, clam, scallop, or mussel, of the class Bivalvia, having two shells hinged together, a soft body, and lamellate gills.
–adjective
2. Botany. having two valves, as a seedcase.
3. Zoology. having two shells, usually united by a hinge.
4. having two similar parts hinged together.
Origin:
1670–80; bi- 1 + valve

Related forms:
bi⋅val⋅vu⋅lar  [bahy-val-vyuh-ler] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To BIVALVE
bi·valve   (bī'vālv')   
n.  A mollusk, such as an oyster or a clam, that has a shell consisting of two hinged valves.
adj.  

  1. Having a shell consisting of two hinged valves.

  2. Consisting of two similar separable parts.

bi'valved' adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

bivalve 
1677 (adj.) in ref. to shutters or doors; 1661 in ref. to shellfish; from bi- + valve. The noun is 1683 in the mollusk sense.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1bi·valve
Pronunciation: 'bI-"valv
Variant: also bi·valved /-"valvd/
Function: adjective
: having or consisting of two corresponding movable pieces suggesting the shells of mollusks bivalve speculum>

Main Entry: 2bivalve
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: bi·valved;bi·valv·ing
: to split (a cast) along one ortwo sides (as to renew surgical dressings or to restore circulation)
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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