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pectoral fin

noun

  1. (in fishes) either of a pair of fins usually situated behind the head, one on each side, and corresponding to the forelimbs of higher vertebrates.


pectoral fin

noun

  1. either of a pair of fins, situated just behind the head in fishes, that help to control the direction of movement during locomotion
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Word History and Origins

Origin of pectoral fin1

First recorded in 1760–70
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Example Sentences

In an ethanol specimen, its pectoral fins look soft and ghostly, whereas the living larva sports flamboyant, spiky and spotted fins.

Pectoral fin on a level with the eye and small; ventral under the center of the pectoral; caudal, slim and forked.

Dr. Traquair thinks that a flap or lappet-like projection behind the head may be a pectoral fin.

As to the presence of limbs, no trace of pectoral fin or anterior limb has been found.

These spines are really enormous dermal fin-rays; the pectoral fin-spine is articulated to the pectoral girdle.

Pectoral fin of an embryo of Scyllium stellare, magnified 16 diameters.

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pectoral crosspectoral girdle