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reptiles - 4 dictionary results
rep⋅tile
[rep-til, -tahyl] 
–noun
| 1. | any cold-blooded vertebrate of the class Reptilia, comprising the turtles, snakes, lizards, crocodilians, amphisbaenians, tuatara, and various extinct members including the dinosaurs. |
| 2. | (loosely) any of various animals that crawl or creep. |
| 3. | a groveling, mean, or despicable person. |
–adjective
| 4. | of or resembling a reptile; creeping or crawling. |
| 5. | groveling, mean, or despicable. |
Origin:
1350–1400; ME reptil < LL rēptile, n. use of neut. of rēptilis creeping, equiv. to L rēpt(us) (ptp. of rēpere to creep) + -ilis -ile
1350–1400; ME reptil < LL rēptile, n. use of neut. of rēptilis creeping, equiv. to L rēpt(us) (ptp. of rēpere to creep) + -ilis -ile
Related forms:
rep⋅tile⋅like, adjective
rep⋅ti⋅loid [rep-tl-oid] , adjective
[rep-tl-oid] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source
|
Link To reptiles
| rep·tile (rěp'tīl', -tĭl) n.
[Middle English reptil, from Old French reptile, from Late Latin rēptile, from neuter of Latin rēptilis, creeping, from rēptus, past participle of rēpere, to creep.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
reptiles
A class of scaly vertebrates that usually reproduce by laying eggs. Lizards, snakes, turtles, and alligators are reptiles. Reptiles are cold-blooded animals.
Note: The dinosaurs were reptiles.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
| reptile (rěp'tīl') Pronunciation Key
Any of various cold-blooded vertebrates of the class Reptilia, having skin covered with scales or horny plates, breathing air with lungs, and usually having a three-chambered heart. Unlike amphibians, whose eggs are fertilized outside the female body, reptiles reproduce by eggs that are fertilized inside the female. Though once varied, widespread, and numerous, reptilian lineages, including the pterosaurs, ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs, and dinosaurs, have mostly become extinct (though birds are living descendants of dinosaurs). The earliest reptiles were the cotylosaurs (or stem reptiles) of the late Mississippian or early Pennsylvanian Period, from which mammals evolved. Modern reptiles include crocodiles, snakes, turtles, and lizards. |
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
