Cnidaria

[ nahy-dair-ee-uh ]

noun

, Zoology.

1. an alternative name for the invertebrate phylum Coelenterata, giving emphasis to the stinging structures as characteristic of the phylum.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Cnidaria¹

From New Latin; cnida, -aria

Example Sentences

Scientists have known for some time that animals in the phylum Cnidaria—which includes jellyfish, corals, and sea anemones—are capable of basic forms of learning when repeatedly presented with a stimulus in their environment.

From Science Magazine

However, Moysiuk says these might have been comb jellies from the Ctenophora phylum, rather than the Cnidaria phylum which includes jellyfish, corals and sea anemones.

From Salon

Such hydrozoans form a subgroup of Cnidaria, a phylum whose members also include jellyfish and coral.

From Scientific American

Neither jellyfish, coral or anemone, this organism, known as a corallimorph, is one of the lesser-known members of the Cnidaria phylum and shown here in a fluorescence photo.

From Scientific American

Corals — multicellular marine invertebrates belonging to the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria — usually live in compact colonies composed of individual structures called polyps.

From Nature