Metazoa

American  

[met-uh-zoh-uh] / ˌmɛt əˈzoʊ ə /

noun

1. a zoological group comprising the multicellular animals.

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Other Word Forms

• metazoal adjective
• metazoan adjective
• metazoic adjective

Etymology

Origin of Metazoa

From New Latin, dating back to 1870–75; see origin at meta-, -zoa

Example Sentences

Our integrative analyses place Ctenophora as the earliest lineage within Metazoa.

From Nature • May 20, 2014

The main assumption was that the neural or blastoporal surface must be homologous throughout the Metazoa, though it was dorsal in the Chordata, ventral in the Annelida and Arthropoda.

From Form and Function A Contribution to the History of Animal Morphology by E. S. (Edward Stuart) Russell

But from this point the developmental histories of all the main branches of the Metazoa diverge—the Vermes, the Echinodermata, the Mollusca, the Articulata, and the Vertebrata, each taking a different road in their subsequent evolution.

From Darwin, and After Darwin (Vol. 1 and 3, of 3) An Exposition of the Darwinian Theory and a Discussion of Post-Darwinian Questions by Romanes, George John

It is desirable only further to explain that gastrulation does not take place in all the Metazoa after exactly the same plan.

From Darwin, and After Darwin (Vol. 1 and 3, of 3) An Exposition of the Darwinian Theory and a Discussion of Post-Darwinian Questions by Romanes, George John

The layers are sometimes spoken of as the primary organs, and their importance lies in the fact that they are supposed to be generally homologous throughout the series of the Metazoa.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 3 "Electrostatics" to "Engis" by Various