selachian

[ si-ley-kee-uhn ]

adjective

1. belonging to the Selachii, a group of fishes comprising the sharks, skates, and rays.

noun

1. a selachian fish.

selachian

/ sɪˈleɪkɪən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or belonging to the Selachii (or Elasmobranchii ), a large subclass of cartilaginous fishes including the sharks, rays, dogfish, and skates

noun

1. any fish belonging to the subclass Selachii

Word History and Origins

Origin of selachian¹

1825–35; < New Latin Selachi ( i ) (plural) name of the order (< Greek seláchios (singular) resembling a shark, cartilaginous, adj. derivative of seláchos shark, ray) + -an

Word History and Origins

Origin of selachian¹

C19: from New Latin Selachiī, from Greek selakhē a shark; related to Greek selas brightness

Example Sentences

Pressed to propose a ‘real animal identity’ for the creature, Heuvelmans noted in a magazine article that it could be “some kind of gigantic eel-like selachian”, which would be a huge deal if correct.

From Scientific American

Of the archipallium, the portion which constitutes the olfactory lobe is well formed in the selachian fish.

From Project Gutenberg