mollusc

/ mɒˈlʌskən; ˈmɒləsk /

noun

any invertebrate of the phylum Mollusca, having a soft unsegmented body and often a shell, secreted by a fold of skin (the mantle). The group includes the gastropods (snails, slugs, etc), bivalves (clams, mussels, etc), and cephalopods (cuttlefish, octopuses, etc)

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Derived Forms

molluscan, adjectivenoun
ˈ��Ǳ��ܲ��-ˌ��, adjective

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Word History and Origins

Origin of mollusc¹

C18: via New Latin from Latin molluscus, from mollis soft

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

She said the rocks were about 140 to 180 million years old and contained ammonites – spiral-shelled molluscs that lived in the oceans while dinosaurs roamed the Earth.

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The mollusc was discovered on the 100-year anniversary of it first being identified and named.

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"The blobfish had been sitting patiently on the ocean floor, mouth open waiting for the next mollusc to come through to eat," the pair said.

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In the oceans, molluscs and crocodilians radiated into diverse new forms.

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Academics said the find had challenged the belief that early molluscs, from a group known as Aculifera, were basic and primitive creatures.

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Molloy Deep Mollusca

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