belemnite

See also: bélemnite

English

Wikispecies

Etymology

From Ancient Greek βέλεμνον (bélemnon, “dart, arrow”) +‎ -ite.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɛləmˌnaɪt/

Noun

belemnite (plural belemnites)

1. (paleontology) Any member of the extinct order † of Mesozoic marine cephalopods, very similar in many ways to the modern squid and closely related to the modern cuttlefish.
   • 1895, H. G. Wells, chapter VIII, in The Time Machine:

     In the universal decay this volatile substance had chanced to survive, perhaps through many thousands of centuries. It reminded me of a sepia painting I had once seen done from the ink of a fossil Belemnite that must have perished and become fossilized millions of years ago.

   • 2017, Danna Staaf, Squid Empire, ForeEdge, →ISBN, page 101:

     The guts of fossilized marine reptiles are packed with belemnites, and it's been theorized that some prehistoric sharks even died from the overconsumption of heavy belemnite shell guards.

Synonyms

• belemnoid
• ceraunite
• elf-bolt
• thunderbolt

Derived terms

• belemnite battlefield

Translations

a member of the extinct order Belemnitida

• Danish: blemnit c, vættelys (da) n (fossil remain of a belemnite arm, resembling a short candle)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Finnish: belemniitti