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altricial

 - 3 dictionary results

al⋅tri⋅cial

  [al-trish-uhl]
Use altricial in a Sentence
–adjective Zoology. (of an animal species)
helpless at birth or hatching and requiring parental care for a period of time (opposed to precocial. )
Origin:
1870–75; < L altrīc-, s. of altrīx wet nurse, nourisher (al(ere) to nourish (cf. aliment ) + -trīx -trix ) + -al 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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al·tri·cial   (āl-trĭsh'əl)   
adj.  Helpless, naked, and blind when hatched: altricial birds.

[From Latin altrīx, altrīc-, feminine of altor, nourisher, from alere, to nourish; see al-2 in Indo-European roots.]
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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Science Dictionary
altricial   (āl-trĭsh'əl)  Pronunciation Key 
Born or hatched in a helpless condition requiring prolonged parental care, as by being naked, blind, or unable to move about. Nesting birds, monotremes, marsupials, and carnivores have altricial young. Compare precocial.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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