dimetrodon
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di·met·ro·don
(dī-mĕt′rə-dŏn′)n.
Any of various carnivorous pelycosaurs of the genus Dimetrodon of the Permian Period, having long spines on the back that supported a sail-like structure, and powerful jaws with sharp teeth.
[New Latin Dimetrodōn, genus name : Greek di-, two; see di-1 + Greek metron, measure; see mē- in Indo-European roots + Greek odōn, tooth (from its having two different kinds of teeth); see dent- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
di•met•ro•don
(daɪˈmɛ trəˌdɒn)n.
an extinct carnivorous mammallike reptile of the North American Permian genus Dimetrodon, with high spines along the back.
[< New Latin (1878) = Greek dímetr(os) having two measures (see dimeter) + odṓn tooth]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
di·met·ro·don
(dī-mĕt′rə-dŏn′) An extinct, meat-eating reptile of the Permian Period having a body similar to an alligator's but with a tall, curved sail on its back. The sail had a thick network of blood vessels and may have been used to regulate the animal's body temperature. The dimetrodon belonged to the early group of reptiles that many scientists believe was ancestral to mammals.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. |  dimetrodon - carnivorous dinosaur of the Permian in North America having a crest or dorsal sailsynapsid, synapsid reptile - extinct reptile having a single pair of lateral temporal openings in the skull genus Dimetrodon - a reptile genus of Pelycosauria |
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