heteracanth

English

Etymology

From hetero- + Ancient Greek ἄκανθα (ákantha, “spine”).

Adjective

heteracanth (not comparable)

1. (botany) Having spines of different sizes.
2. (zoology) Having the spines of the dorsal fin asymmetrical, or thickened alternately on the right and left sides.

Related terms

• acanthous
• homacanth

 

Translations

having spines of different sizes

• French: hétéracanthe

References

Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for “heteracanth”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.)