ankylosaurus

The story

1. Ancient Greek · derived fromσαῦρος“lizard”
2. New Latin · derived from-saurus
3. Ancient Greek · derived fromἀγκύλος“crooked”
4. taxonomic name · borrowed fromAnkylosaurus
5. English todayankylosaurus

From taxonomic name Ankylosaurus, from ankylo- + -saurus, from Ancient Greek ἀγκύλος (ankúlos, “crooked”) + New Latin -saurus, from Ancient Greek σαῦρος (saûros, “lizard”). The word was coined in 1908 without explanation by Barnum Brown and may refer to his mistaken belief that its back was sharply bent in a manner similar to the stegosaurus or to his attention to the fusion of his specimens' rear ribs to their vertebrae, a condition medically known as ankylosis.

Words from the same roots

First known use, by meaning

• 1908 Ankylosaurus magniventris, a large herbivorous dinosaur of the Cretaceous period notable for its heavy armor and clublike tail.