[kawr-deyt] 
Zoology| 1. | belonging or pertaining to the phylum Chordata, comprising the true vertebrates and those animals having a notochord, as the lancelets and tunicates. |
| 2. | a chordate animal. |
| chor·date (kôr'dāt', -dĭt) n. Any of numerous animals belonging to the phylum Chordata, having at some stage of development a dorsal nerve cord, a notochord, and gill slits and including all vertebrates and certain marine animals, such as the lancelets. [From New Latin Chordāta, phylum name, from Latin chorda, cord; see cord.] chor'date adj. |
chordate chor·date (kôr'dāt', -dĭt)
n.
An animal of the phylum Chordata, which includes all vertebrates.
| chordate (kôr'dāt') Pronunciation Key
Any of a large group of animals of the phylum Chordata, having at some stage of development a notochord (flexible spinal column) and nerve cord running along the back, a tail stretching above and behind the anus, and gill slits. Chordates probably evolved before the Cambrian Period and are related to the hemichordates, echinoderms, and chaetognaths. The vertebrates, tunicates, and cephalochordates are the three main groups of chordates. |
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