stegosaur

[ steg-uh-sawr ]

noun

1. a plant-eating dinosaur of the genus Stegosaurus, from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, having a heavy, bony armor and a row of bony plates along its back, and growing to a length of 20 to 40 feet (6–12 meters).

stegosaur

/ ˈstɛɡəˌsɔː; ˌstɛɡəˈsɔːrəs /

noun

1. any quadrupedal herbivorous ornithischian dinosaur of the suborder Stegosauria, esp any of the genus Stegosaurus, of Jurassic and early Cretaceous times, having an armour of bony plates

stegosaur

/ stĕg′ə-sôr′ /

1. Any of several large herbivorous ornithischian dinosaurs of the group Stegosauria of the Jurassic and early Cretaceous Periods. The largest genus, Stegosaurus, had a tail with two horizontal spikes for defense, and an arched back with an alternating double row of large, triangular, upright bony plates. Stegosaurs grew over 6 m (20 ft) long, but had extremely small heads with brains the size of a walnut. The hindquarters were controlled by a neural ganglion in the hip region that was larger than the brain.

Word History and Origins

Origin of stegosaur¹

< New Latin Stegosaurus (1877); stego-, -saur

Word History and Origins

Origin of stegosaur¹

C19: from Greek stegos roof + -saur

Example Sentences

This model was based on the ancient fauna of the Jurassic-aged Morrison Formation, which included large predators like Allosaurus alongside large sauropods, their carcasses, and an infinite supply of huntable stegosaurs.

From Science Daily

In 2000 he was part of the team that discovered the first stegosaur fossils outside North America.

From Los Angeles Times

“It was my husband who first identified the fossilized stegosaur droppings for the university.”

From Literature

It's believed the fossil "most likely represents a stegosaur fibula," according to the study's abstract.

From Fox News

The collection includes some of the earliest stegosaurs named, such as Dacentrurus itself, but has only been recently recognized as experts have gone back to sort through the comparatively rare remains of the charismatic saurians.

From Scientific American