Etymology

cnidarian

cni·dar·i·an
C3N1I1D2A1R1I1A1N1

Today it means: Any of various invertebrate animals, such as jellyfish, hydras, sea anemones, corals and formerly sponges and ctenophores that belong to the phylum Cnidaria. Full definition →

First used 19th c.New Latin Cnīdāria ← Ancient Greek κνῑ́δη
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The story

  1. Ancient Greek · derived fromκνῑ́δη
  2. New Latin · derived fromCnīdāria
  3. English todaycnidarian

From translingual Cnidaria + -an, derived from New Latin Cnīdāria, derived from Ancient Greek κνῑ́δη (knī́dē, “sea nettle”).

First known use, by meaning

  • from 19th c. Any of various invertebrate animals, such as jellyfish, hydras, sea anemones, corals and formerly sponges and ctenophores that belong to the phylum Cnidaria.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.