dinosaur
Americannoun
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any chiefly terrestrial, herbivorous or carnivorous reptile of the extinct orders Saurischia and Ornithischia, from the Mesozoic Era, certain species of which are the largest known land animals.
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something that is unwieldy in size, anachronistically outmoded, or unable to adapt to change.
The old steel mill was a dinosaur that cost the company millions to operate.
noun
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any extinct terrestrial reptile of the orders Saurischia and Ornithischia, many of which were of gigantic size and abundant in the Mesozoic era See also saurischian ornithischian Compare pterosaur plesiosaur
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a person or thing that is considered to be out of date
Other Word Forms
- dinosaurian adjective
Etymology
Origin of dinosaur
< New Latin Dinosaurus (1841), originally a genus name. See dino-, -saur
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Deep in the desert of Niger, scientists have unearthed an unknown species of dinosaur, a giant fissvery of its kind in more than a century.
From Barron's
Thomas R. Holtz Jr., a principal lecturer in the University of Maryland's Department of Geology, has spent years studying how dinosaurs functioned within their ecosystems and how those systems differed from today's world.
From Science Daily
Sparks fly and metal groans in a cavernous workshop on the outskirts of Islamabad, where Pakistani artist Ehtisham Jadoon fuses discarded car parts into colossal pieces inspired by "Transformers" movies and dinosaurs.
From Barron's
It is not the first time the park which operates a zoo, animal refuge and dinosaur attraction has warned of financial struggles.
From BBC
A newly published study in Science announces the discovery of Spinosaurus mirabilis, a previously unknown species of spinosaurid dinosaur uncovered in Niger.
From Science Daily
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
