Aus·tra·lo·pith·e·cus

(ôs′trə-lō-pĭth′ĭ-kəs, ô-strā′lō-)

A genus of extinct hominins known from Pliocene and early Pleistocene fossil remains found in Africa, characterized by relatively small brain size and evidence of bipedalism. Several species are known, including A. afarensis, dating from four to three million years ago, of which Lucy is the best-known specimen.

[New Latin Austrālopithēcus, genus name : Latin austrālis, southern (because fossil remains of the genus were first found in South Africa); see austral + Greek pithēkos, ape (of unknown origin).]

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.

Aus•tra•lo•pith•e•cus

(ɔˌstreɪ loʊˈpɪθ ɪ kəs, -pəˈθi kəs, ˌɔ strə-)

n.

a genus of small-brained, large-toothed bipedal hominids that lived in Africa between one and four million years ago.

[< New Latin (1905) =austral(is) austral¹ + -o- -o- + pithēcus < Greek píthēkos ape]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

Australopithecus - extinct genus of African hominid

genus Australopithecus

mammal genus - a genus of mammals

family Hominidae, Hominidae - modern man and extinct immediate ancestors of man

australopithecine - any of several extinct humanlike bipedal primates with relatively small brains of the genus Australopithecus; from 1 to 4 million years ago

Australopithecus afarensis - fossils found in Ethiopia; from 3.5 to 4 million years ago

Lucy - incomplete skeleton of female found in eastern Ethiopia in 1974

Australopithecus africanus - gracile hominid of southern Africa; from about 3 million years ago

Australopithecus boisei - large-toothed hominid of eastern Africa; from 1 to 2 million years ago

Australopithecus robustus - large-toothed hominid of southern Africa; from 1.5 to 2 million years ago; formerly Paranthropus