scute

[ skyoot ]

noun

, Zoology.

1. a dermal bony plate, as on an armadillo, or a large horny plate, as on a turtle.
2. a large scale.

scute

/ skjuːt /

noun

1. zoology a horny or chitinous plate that makes up part of the exoskeleton in armadillos, turtles, fishes, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of scute¹

1350–1400 for earlier sense “French coin, écu ( def ) ”; 1840–50 for current senses; Middle English < Latin scūtum “shield”

Word History and Origins

Origin of scute¹

C14 (the name of a French coin; C19 in zoological sense): from Latin scūtum shield

Example Sentences

With their armor of triangular bumps or scutes, sturgeon don’t just look prehistoric.

From Seattle Times

These scales, also known as scutes, are quite tough.

From National Geographic

He showed me where the sturgeon’s scutes—the sharp, bony plates on its back—had been forced into the body of the paddlefish.

From The New Yorker

Sturgeon date to the era of dinosaurs, and with their back ridges called scutes, still bear a resemblance to kids’ dinosaur toys.

From The Guardian

And Borealopelta, named just this past year, is the most exquisite ankylosaur ever found – pointed scutes so delicately fossilized that experts were able to determine this trundling herbivore was colored a rosy red.

From Scientific American