dinosaur

[ dahy-nuh-sawr ]

noun

1. any chiefly terrestrial, herbivorous or carnivorous reptile of the extinct orders Saurischia and Ornithischia, from the Mesozoic Era, certain species of which are the largest known land animals.
2. something that is unwieldy in size, anachronistically outmoded, or unable to adapt to change:

   The old steel mill was a dinosaur that cost the company millions to operate.

dinosaur

/ ˈdaɪnəˌsɔː /

noun

1. any extinct terrestrial reptile of the orders Saurischia and Ornithischia, many of which were of gigantic size and abundant in the Mesozoic era See also saurischian ornithischian Compare pterosaur plesiosaur
2. a person or thing that is considered to be out of date

Derived Forms

• ˌdinoˈsaurian, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of dinosaur¹

< New Latin Dinosaurus (1841), originally a genus name. See dino-, -saur

Word History and Origins

Origin of dinosaur¹

C19: from New Latin dinosaurus, from Greek deinos fearful + sauros lizard

Example Sentences

The pterosaurs are extinct flying reptiles that lived alongside their close relatives, the dinosaurs.

From Science Daily

The earth the dinosaurs once trod is now a massive expanse of solid rock.

From Los Angeles Times

Navaornis lived approximately 80 million years ago in what is now Brazil, before the mass extinction event that killed all non-avian dinosaurs.

From BBC

I like to look at the dinosaur bones too.

From Los Angeles Times

National letters of intent have gone the way of typewriters, rotary telephones and dinosaurs.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• antiquated
• archaic
• out-of-date
• outmoded