triton

¹ American  

[trahy-ton] / ˈtraɪ tɒn /

noun

Physics.

1. a positively-charged particle consisting of a proton and two neutrons, equivalent to the nucleus of an atom of tritium.

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Triton ² American  

[trahyt-n] / ˈtraɪt n /

noun

1. Classical Mythology. a son of Poseidon and Amphitrite, represented as having the head and trunk of a man and the tail of a fish, and as using a conch-shell trumpet.

2. Astronomy. a moon of Neptune.

3. (lowercase) any of various marine gastropods of the family Cymatiidae, having a large, spiral, often beautifully colored shell.

4. (lowercase) the shell of a triton.

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Triton ¹ British  

/ ˈtraɪtən /

noun

1. a sea god, son of Poseidon and Amphitrite, depicted as having the upper parts of a man with a fish's tail and holding a trumpet made from a conch shell

2. one of a class of minor sea deities

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Triton ² British  

/ ˈtraɪtən /

noun

1. the largest satellite of the planet Neptune. Diameter: 2700 km

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triton ³ British  

/ ˈtraɪtən /

noun

1. any of various chiefly tropical marine gastropod molluscs of the genera Charonia , Cymatium , etc, having large beautifully-coloured spiral shells

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triton ⁴ British  

/ ˈtraɪtɒn /

noun

1. physics a nucleus of an atom of tritium, containing two neutrons and one proton

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Other Word Forms

• Tritonic adjective

Etymology

Origin of triton

1930–35; < Greek tríton, neuter of trítos third, equivalent to trí- tri- + -ton neuter adj. suffix; -on ¹

Example Sentences

The bird was either a yellow-crested or a triton cockatoo, she said, meaning it most likely came from northern Australia, Papua New Guinea, or islands off Indonesia.

From BBC • Jun. 25, 2018

Ships teem around the Arsenale while a colossal triton rides a sea monster at the mouth of the Grand Canal – the real marries the fabulous as Venice is wedded to the sea.

From The Guardian • Apr. 23, 2010

By relentlessly hunting for a rare trumpet-shaped mollusk called the giant triton, some scientists say, shell collectors have taken a devastating toll of one of the crown-of-thorns' few natural enemies.

From Time Magazine Archive

He wiped his forehead, in reply, gasping like a triton, and muttering the expressive direction, "right!" disappeared into a guard-box.

From Campaigns of a Non-Combatant, and His Romaunt Abroad During the War by Townsend, George Alfred

Then Miss Wardour was a syren, or a bird of Paradise; her father a triton, or a sea-gull; and Oldbuck alternately a porpoise and a cormorant.

From The Antiquary — Volume 01 by Scott, Walter, Sir