millipede

or mil·le·pede

[ mil-uh-peed ]
/ ˈmɪl əˌpid /

noun

any terrestrial arthropod of the class Diplopoda, having a cylindrical body composed of 20 to more than 100 segments, each with two pairs of legs.

Origin of millipede

1595–1605; < Latin mīlipeda (Pliny), equivalent to mīli- milli- + -peda, derivative of pēs, stem ped- foot

Words nearby millipede

millionaire, millionairess, millionfold, millionth, milliosmole, millipede, milliradian, millirem, milliroentgen, millisecond, millivolt

Example sentences from the Web for millipede

  • If there is pathos in this, there is bathos in his apostrophe to the millipede, beginning "Poor sowbug!"

    Medical Essays |Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

  • The millipede cautiously reared its head from the sand and felt timidly about.

    Jungle Peace |William Beebe

  • Hypopi have been found in the gill chambers of a mollusk and in the gonads of a millipede (Baker and Wharton, 1952).

    The Biotic Associations of Cockroaches |Louis M. Roth

  • The last pair of legs in the centipede and millipede are never used for walking, and are generally much longer than the rest.

    Chatterbox, 1905. |Various

British Dictionary definitions for millipede

millipede

millepede milleped

/ (ˈmɪlɪˌpiːd) /

noun

any terrestrial herbivorous arthropod of the class Diplopoda, having a cylindrical body made up of many segments, each of which bears two pairs of walking legs See also myriapod

Word Origin for millipede

C17: from Latin, from mille thousand + pēs foot

Scientific definitions for millipede

millipede
[ mĭl′ə-pēd′ ]

Any of various wormlike arthropods of the class Diplopoda, having a long body composed of many narrow segments, most of which have two pairs of legs. Millipedes feed on plants and, unlike centipedes, do not have venomous pincers. Compare centipede.