belemnite

[ bel-uh m-nahyt ]
/ ˈbɛl əmˌnaɪt /

noun Paleontology.

a conical fossil, several inches long, consisting of the internal calcareous rod of an extinct animal allied to the cuttlefish; a thunderstone.

Origin of belemnite

1640–50; < French bélemnite, equivalent to Greek bélemn(on) a dart (noun derivative from base of bállein to throw) + French -ite -ite1

Words nearby belemnite

belch, beld, beldam, beleaguer, belection, belemnite, belemnoid, belfast, belfort, belfry, belg.

Example sentences from the Web for belemnite

British Dictionary definitions for belemnite

belemnite
/ (ˈbɛləmˌnaɪt) /

noun

any extinct marine cephalopod mollusc of the order Belemnoidea, related to the cuttlefish
the long pointed conical internal shell of any of these animals: a common Mesozoic fossil

Word Origin for belemnite

C17: from Greek belemnon dart

Scientific definitions for belemnite

belemnite
[ bĕl′əm-nīt′ ]

Any of various extinct cephalopod mollusks of the order Belemnoidea that lived from the Triassic into the Tertiary Period. Belemnites had a large, cone-shaped internal shell with a complex structure that served as a support for muscles and as a hydrostatic device. Belemnites were closely related to the present-day squids and cuttlefishes.
The fossilized internal shell of one of these cephalopods. Belemnites are used as index fossils.