labyrinthodont

[ lab-uh-rin-thuh-dont ]

noun

1. any member of several orders of small to large lizardlike terrestrial and freshwater amphibians, some ancestral to land vertebrates, forming the extinct subclass Labyrinthodonta that flourished from the Devonian through the Triassic periods, characterized by a solid, flattened skull and conical teeth.

adjective

1. having teeth with complexly infolded enamel surfaces.
2. belonging to or pertaining to the Labyrinthodonta.

labyrinthodont

/ ˌlæbəˈrɪnθəˌdɒnt /

noun

1. any primitive amphibian of the order Labyrinthodontia, of late Devonian to Triassic times, having teeth with much-folded dentine

labyrinthodont

/ lăb′ə-rĭn′thə-dŏnt′ /

1. Any of various extinct amphibians of the group Labyrinthodontia, which were the dominant animals of the late Paleozoic Era. Labyrinthodonts had stocky, lizardlike bodies with short limbs, and fishlike teeth with labyrinthine structure (with complex infolding of the enamel). They varied from the size of a salamander to that of a crocodile. One early genus, Ichthyostega, was probably the first terrestrial vertebrate.

Word History and Origins

Origin of labyrinthodont¹

1840–50; < New Latin Labyrinthodonta, equivalent to Greek labýrinth ( os ) labyrinth + -odonta, neuter plural of -odontos -odont

Word History and Origins

Origin of labyrinthodont¹

C19: from Greek laburinthos labyrinth + -odont

Example Sentences

Although the stapes and otic region are readily visible in a number of labyrinthodonts and lepospondyls, no indication of an operculum seems to be reported among them.

From Project Gutenberg

The rarity in the deposits of animals of larger body size than Captorhinus, the exceptions being a few limb fragments and skull fragments of labyrinthodont or pelycosaurian nature.

From Project Gutenberg