GASTROPOD Definition & Meaning

gastropod

[ gas-truh-pod ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

any mollusk of the class Gastropoda, comprising the snails, whelks, slugs, etc.

adjective

Also ��·�ٰ��Ǳ�·��·��ǳܲ� [] belonging or pertaining to the gastropods.

gastropod

/ ɡæsˈtrɒpədən; ˈɡæstrəˌpɒd /

noun

any mollusc of the class Gastropoda, typically having a flattened muscular foot for locomotion and a head that bears stalked eyes. The class includes the snails, whelks, limpets, and slugs

adjective

of, relating to, or belonging to the Gastropoda

gastropod

/ ��ă��′�ٰ�ə-��ŏ��′ /

Any of various carnivorous or herbivorous mollusks of the class Gastropoda, having a head with eyes and feelers and a muscular foot on the underside of its body with which it moves. Most gastropods are aquatic, but some have adapted to life on land. Gastropods include snails, which have a coiled shell, and slugs, which have a greatly reduced shell or none at all.

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Derived Forms

��ˈ�ٰ��Ǳ�ǻ�ǳܲ�, adjective
gastropodan, adjectivenoun

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�y��vlog History and Origins

Origin of gastropod¹

First recorded in 1820–30, gastropod is from the New Latin word Gast(e)ropoda a class of mollusks. See gastro-, -pod

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�y��vlog History

Snails, conchs, whelks, and many other similar animals with shells are all called gastropods by scientists. The word gastropod comes from Greek and means “stomach foot,” a name that owes its existence to the unusual anatomy of snails. Snails have a broad flat muscular “foot” used for support and for forward movement. This foot runs along the underside of the animal—essentially along its belly. The Greek elements ��ٰ��–, “stomach,” and ��ǻ�, “foot,” are found in many other scientific names, such as gastritis (an inflammation of the stomach) and sauropod (“lizard foot,” a type of dinosaur).

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

“Memoir of a Snail” is a strange stop-motion tragicomedy straight out of Dickens that’s not about a gastropod but the grim life of a grief-stricken snail enthusiast.

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But for Grace Pudel, the human protagonist of director Adam Elliot’s wily, melancholy new animated feature “Memoir of a Snail,” that gastropod is a symbol of the life she’s resigned herself to.

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"Our research is the first to demonstrate that these nematodes infect and kill a non-target gastropod species in the Northwest, which due to its rainy climate is a land slug and snail biodiversity hotspot."

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Evidence, including the fossil record, shows that gastropods had a massive diversification and proliferation just after the asteroid hit, and it's known that terrestrial slugs are heavy predators of mushrooms.

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The endangered magnificent ramshorn snail is living in the wild in North Carolina again for the first time in 20 years following the reintroduction of 2,860 of the slow-moving gastropods into a pond.

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