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dinosaur Definition

di·no·saur (nə sôr′)

noun

  1. any of various extinct, mostly land-dwelling, four-limbed saurischian or ornithischian reptiles of the Mesozoic Era, including some c. 30 m (98.4 ft) long: the flesh-eaters usually walked on their hind limbs, the plant-eaters on all fours
  2. loosely any large, extinct reptile of the Paleozoic or Mesozoic eras
  3. someone or something thought of as being old-fashioned, outmoded, resistant to change, etc.

Etymology: dino- + -saur

dinosaur Related Forms

di′·no·sau·rian (-sôrē ən) adjective

dinosaur Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • meat-eating: Scientists who study meat-eating dinosaurs, known as theropods, have noted their similarity to living birds.
  • them: Theme Party A dinosaur themed birthday party is just what those tiny tearaways need to expend all that excess energy.
  • kill: I'm waiting up to watch a potentially interesting episode of Horizon, about what killed the dinosaurs.
  • discover: Can you solve the hidden clues to find its nest and discover the dinosaur?

Adjective modifier

  • bipedal: Most bipedal dinosaurs had a leg length or hip height approximately four times the length of their footprint.
  • carnivorous: Fossil remains of a herbivorous and carnivorous dinosaur may be seen at park headquarters at Hua Phu Chon Reservoir.
  • non-avian: Pterosaurs and non-avian dinosaurs had no obvious adaptations for burrowing or swimming and became extinct.
  • duck-billed: Other dinosaurs, particularly the duck-billed dinosaurs, give us other clues.
  • animatronic: Explore a scene straight from Jurassic times with the most lifelike animatronic dinosaurs ever seen.
  • predatory: Question Bearing in mind all the caveats in the previous question, what was the biggest predatory dinosaur?

Modifies a noun

  • footprint: The photo shows a dinosaur footprint at Hastings, UK.
  • skeleton: Little old lady: How old is that dinosaur skeleton?
  • ludo: We played lots of games - dinosaur ludo, uno and set.
  • fossil: See the quarry where many dinosaur fossils were unearthed at the Dinosaur National Monument.
  • extinction: Could connect it with stuff about dinosaur extinctions, pictures of moons and planets, the radio telescope they built in a crater... .
  • bone: Most dinosaur bones are found on their own, broken into small pieces.

Noun used with modifier

  • theropod: The Liaoning fauna has given us a unique glimpse into a world where a variety of feathery, theropod dinosaurs lived side by side.
  • sauropod: The huge pillar like legs were needed to support the enormous body weight of the sauropod dinosaurs.
  • inflatable: I received my inflatable dinosaur and other goodies this morning, I wasn't expecting them till the middle of next week.
  • baby: A baby dinosaur, just hatched, would follow in the footsteps of its parent, perhaps only a short distance from the nest.

Browse dictionary entries near dinosaur

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  4. dinnerware
  5. dinnertime
  6. dinner theater
  7. dinner ring
  8. dinner jacket
  9. dinner
  10. dinky
  1. dinothere
  2. dint
  3. Dinwiddie
  4. dioc
  5. diocesan
  6. diocese
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  8. diode
  9. diode laser
  10. dioecious