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nautilus
6 dictionary results for: Nautilus
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
nau·ti·lus 
[nawt-l-uhs, not-] Pronunciation Key
[nawt-l-uhs, not-] Pronunciation Key –noun, plural nau·ti·lus·es, nau·ti·li
[nawt-l-ahy, not-] Pronunciation Key for 1, 2.
[nawt-l-ahy, not-] Pronunciation Key for 1, 2. | 1. | Also called chambered nautilus, pearly nautilus. any cephalopod of the genus Nautilus, having a spiral, chambered shell with pearly septa. |
| 2. | paper nautilus. |
| 3. | (initial capital letter) the first nuclear-powered submarine launched by the U.S. Navy. |
[Origin: 1595–1605; < L < Gk nautílos paper nautilus, lit., sailor, deriv. of naûs ship; the webbed dorsal arms of the paper nautilus were thought to have been used as sails]
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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| nau·ti·lus
(nôt'l-əs) Pronunciation Key
n. pl. nau·ti·lus·es or nau·ti·li (nôt'l-ī')
[Latin, from Greek nautilos, sailor, nautilus, from nautēs, mariner, from naus, ship; see nāu- in Indo-European roots.] |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
nautilus
nautilus
marine cephalopod, 1601, from L. nautilus, in Pliny a kind of marine snail (including also squid, cuttlefish, polyps, etc.), from Gk. nautilos, "paper nautilus," lit. "sailor," from nautes "sailor," from naus "ship" (see naval). The cephalopod was formerly thought to use its webbed arms as sails.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| nautilus | |
noun | |
| 1. | a submarine that is propelled by nuclear power |
| 2. | cephalopod mollusk of warm seas whose females have delicate papery spiral shells [syn: paper nautilus] |
| 3. | cephalopod of the Indian and Pacific oceans having a spiral shell with pale pearly partitions [syn: chambered nautilus] |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
U.S. Gazetteer - Cite This Source - Share This
Conning Towers-Nautilus Park, CT (CDP, FIPS 16960) Location: 41.37445 N, 72.07510 W
Population (1990): 10013 (2769 housing units)
Area: 4.7 sq km (land), 1.0 sq km (water)
U.S. Gazetteer, U.S. Census Bureau
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Nautilus
Nau"ti*lus\, n.; pl. E. Nautiluses, L. Nautili. [L., fr. gr. nayti`los a seaman, sailor, a kind of shellfish which was supposed to be furnished with a membrane which served as a sail; fr. nay^s ship. See Nave of a church.]1. (Zo["o]l.) The only existing genus of tetrabranchiate cephalopods. About four species are found living in the tropical Pacific, but many other species are found fossil. The shell is spiral, symmetrical, and chambered, or divided into several cavities by simple curved partitions, which are traversed and connected together by a continuous and nearly central tube or siphuncle. See Tetrabranchiata. Note: The head of the animal bears numerous simple tapered arms, or tentacles, arranged in groups, but not furnished with suckers. The siphon, unlike, that of ordinary cephalopods, is not a closed tube, and is not used as a locomotive organ, but merely serves to conduct water to and from the gill cavity, which contains two pairs of gills. The animal occupies only the outer chamber of the shell; the others are filled with gas. It creeps over the bottom of the sea, not coming to the surface to swim or sail, as was formerly imagined. 2. The argonaut; -- also called paper nautilus. See Argonauta, and Paper nautilus, under Paper. 3. A variety of diving bell, the lateral as well as vertical motions of which are controlled, by the occupants.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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