chordate

[ kawr-deyt ]
/ ˈkɔr deɪt /
Zoology

adjective

belonging or pertaining to the phylum Chordata, comprising the true vertebrates and those animals having a notochord, as the lancelets and tunicates.

noun

a chordate animal.

Origin of chordate

First recorded in 1885–90; see origin at Chordata

Words nearby chordate

chorda, chorda tendinea, chordal, chordamesoderm, chordata, chordate, chordates, chordee, chording, chorditis, chordo-

Example sentences from the Web for chordates

British Dictionary definitions for chordates

chordate
/ (ˈkɔːˌdeɪt) /

noun

any animal of the phylum Chordata, including the vertebrates and protochordates, characterized by a notochord, dorsal tubular nerve cord, and pharyngeal gill slits

adjective

of, relating to, or belonging to the Chordata

Word Origin for chordate

C19: from Medieval Latin chordata; see chord 1 + -ate 1

Medical definitions for chordates

chordate
[ kôr′dāt′, -dĭt ]

n.

An animal of the phylum Chordata, which includes all vertebrates.

Scientific definitions for chordates

chordate
[ kôr′dāt′ ]

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.

Cultural definitions for chordates

chordates
[ (kawr-dayts, kawr-duhts) ]

Animals that have a central nerve like the human spinal cord.

notes for chordates

Chordates make up a phylum in the animal kingdom that includes all the vertebrates, along with some primitive wormlike sea animals. ( See Linnean classification.)