Etymology

heterocercal

H4E1T1E1R1O1C3E1R1C3A1L1

Today it means: Of a fish's tail, such that the vertebral column bends and extends upwards into the upper lobe of the tail, making it larger than the lower lobe; as in sharks, rays, and skates. Full definition →

English cercal ← Ancient Greek ἕτερος (héteros) ← Proto-Hellenic *hə́teros
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sem-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*sḿ̥teros
  3. Proto-Hellenic*hə́teros
  4. Ancient Greekἕτερος (héteros)
  5. Englishhetero-
  6. Englishcercal
  7. English todayheterocercal

From hetero- + cercal.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.