brachiopod

noun

bra·​chio·​pod ˈbrā-kē-ə-ˌpäd How to pronounce brachiopod (audio)
: any of a phylum (Brachiopoda) of marine invertebrates with bivalve shells within which is a pair of arms bearing tentacles by which a current of water is made to bring microscopic food to the mouth

called also lampshell

brachiopod adjective

Examples of brachiopod in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web In the Cambrian, tubes built by one species of giant worms hosted another, and brachiopods encrusted the bodies of free swimming arthropods like barnacles on modern whales. Asher Elbein, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2023 Runoff from overgrazed, eroding soil, Kidwell and her colleagues concluded, must have smothered the hard surfaces the brachiopods needed, resulting in the local extinction of an entire ecosystem. Bob Holmes, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Aug. 2023 As a result, the fossils found in shale are typically small, aquatic animals and plants, such as bryozoans, brachiopods and arthropods. Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 28 Mar. 2023 The event took its hardest toll on marine organisms such as corals, shelled brachiopods, eel-like creatures called conodonts, and the trilobites. Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 30 Sep. 2019 Invertebrate groups that experienced diversification included horseshoe crab-like trilobites, clams, clam-like brachiopods and a group called gastropods that included snails and slugs. Will Dunham, Washington Post, 24 Sep. 2019 The first saw the emergence of brachiopods and molluscs, the second that of annelids, cnidarians, echinoderms and chordates (a group that includes the vertebrates). The Economist, 7 June 2018 That is in contradistinction to Cambrian fossils, among which are found representatives of all the main animal groups (annelids, arthropods, brachiopods, chordates, cnidarians, echinoderms, molluscs and so on) that are around today. The Economist, 7 June 2018 The warm coastal waters surrounding Gondwana were perfect for new kinds of animals, like brachiopods, crinoids, ostracodes, cephalopods, corals, and bryozoans. Annalee Newitz, Ars Technica, 21 Nov. 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'brachiopod.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

ultimately from Latin bracchium + Greek pod-, pous foot — more at foot

First Known Use

1814, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of brachiopod was in 1814

Dictionary Entries Near brachiopod

Cite this Entry

“Brachiopod.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brachiopod. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

brachiopod

noun
bra·​chio·​pod ˈbrā-kē-ə-ˌpäd How to pronounce brachiopod (audio)
: any of a phylum of invertebrate marine animals that have bivalve shells and a pair of arms bearing tentacles

called also lampshell

brachiopod adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on brachiopod

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!