ple·si·o·saur

(plē′sē-ə-sôr′, plē′zē-)

n. pl. ple·si·o·saurs

Any of various extinct marine reptiles of the group Plesiosauria of the Mesozoic Era, having paddlelike limbs, a short tail, and sometimes a very long neck.

[New Latin Plēsiosaurus, type genus : Greek plēsios, near to; see pel- in Indo-European roots + Greek sauros, lizard.]

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.

plesiosaur

(ˈpliːsɪəˌsɔː)

(Palaeontology) any of various extinct marine reptiles of the order Sauropterygia, esp any of the suborder Plesiosauria, of Jurassic and Cretaceous times, having a long neck, short tail, and paddle-like limbs. See also ichthyosaur Compare dinosaur, pterosaur

[C19: from New Latin plēsiosaurus, from Greek plēsios near + sauros a lizard]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ple•si•o•saur

(ˈpli si əˌsɔr)

n.

any extinct marine reptile of the Jurassic and Cretaceous suborder Plesiosauroidea, having a thick body and paddlelike limbs.

[< New Latin Plesiosaurus (1821) genus name < Greek plēsí(os) near, close to + -o- -o- + saûros -saur]

ple`si•o•sau′roid, adj.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

plesiosaur - extinct marine reptile with a small head on a long neck a short tail and four paddle-shaped limbs; of the Jurassic and Cretaceous

plesiosaurus

archosaur, archosaurian, archosaurian reptile - extinct reptiles including: dinosaurs; plesiosaurs; pterosaurs; ichthyosaurs; thecodonts

genus Plesiosaurus - a reptile genus of suborder Plesiosauria

Translations

плезиозавр

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

There were huge tortoises too, paddling about among these other reptiles, which Perry said were Plesiosaurs of the Lias.

View in context

The thing must have been sixteen or eighteen feet in length and closely resembled pictures I had seen of restored plesiosaurs of the lower Jurassic.

View in context

One theory is the monster is a plesiosaur that survived when dinosaurs became extinct.

LOCH YES MONSTER; Scientist: Mystery beast 'might' be real

One theory claims the monster is a long-necked plesiosaur that survived the period when dinosaurs became extinct.

LOCH YES MONSTER; Scientist claims one Nessie theory could be correct

| The village is on the Midland Main Line, and Ivanhoe Line trains stop at the Barrow-upon-Soar railway station | The village is famous for a plesiosaur excavated in a nearby limepit in 1851, nicknamed the 'Barrow Kipper'.

VALLEY VIEWS

Argentine paleontologists unveiled on Wednesday the replica of a 65-million-year-old skeleton of a plesiosaur marine reptile found in a Patagonian lake in 2009.

Argentina puts 65-million-year-old dinosaur replica on display

A mounted skeleton of the giant plesiosaur Kronosaurus, Brevoria.

A new large Pliosaurid from the Barremian (Lower Cretaceous) of Sachica, Boyaca, Colombia/Un nuevo Pliosaurido de gran tamano del Barremiano (Cretacico Inferior) de Sachica, Boyaca, Colombia

Visitors can hang out with him and his pal Percy the Plesiosaur in the Fossils gallery, meet Maude the Tigon from Belle Vue Zoo and discover artefacts from Ancient Egypt and other ancient civilisations.

Football, history and music pull tourists in; PS670m boost for economy as visitors flood into manchester

It has 8000 objects, including a full size plesiosaur, a 2.6m skeleton of Stenopterygius and an almost complete Jurassic turtle shell.

Land of the giants; As fifth dinosaur movie makes a huge impression on cinemagoers, here are some more places to have Jurassic fun

Thankfully, I did, as I'd uncovered a Plesiosaur skeleton - a large marine reptile that lived during the early Jurassic period (200-145 million years ago).

'I DIG UP DINOSAURS AS MY DAY JOB' Jamie Jordan, 28, has been mad about dinosaurs since he was four. So when he and colleague Sarah Moore recently unearthed a rare dinosaur, it was a dream come true

He likes animals of all kinds -- dinosaurs, Coyote Peterson-wildlife educator; birds (peacocks and hummingbirds), river monsters (plesiosaur), beta fighting fish, camping, playout outside, school, skinks.

April Students of the Month North School

FOSSILS AT MARKET HALL MUSEUM Market Place, Warwick The Wilmcote plesiosaur, a prehistoric sea monster whose remains were found in a quarry near Stratford, is on display at this museum.

Deeply Dippy about dinosaurs; DIPPY THE DINOSAUR IS COMING - AND WE'RE SUPER EXCITED! IT'S GOT US THINKING ABOUT ALL THE OTHER BRILLIANT PLACES YOU CAN SEE DINOS AND FOSSILS AROUND BIRMINGHAM. ZOE CHAMBERLAIN REPORTS