Meanings
plural belemnites
- biologyAny member of the extinct order †Belemnitida of Mesozoic marine cephalopods, very similar in many ways to the modern squid and closely related to the modern cuttlefish.
The guts of fossilized marine reptiles are packed with belemnites, and it's been theorized that some prehistoric sharks even died from the overconsumption of heavy belemnite shell guards.
2017, Danna Staaf, Squid Empire, ForeEdge, →ISBN, page 1011 more example
In the universal decay this volatile substance had chanced to survive, perhaps through many thousands of centuries. It reminded me of a sepia painting I had once seen done from the ink of a fossil Belemnite that must have perished and become fossilized millions of years ago.
1895, H. G. Wells, chapter VIII, in The Time MachineSynonyms: arrowstone, belemnoid, ceraunite, elf-bolt, thunderbolt
Synonyms & antonyms
nounAny member of the extinct order †Belemnitida of Mesozoic marine cephalopods, very similar in many ways to the modern squid and closely related to the modern cuttlefish.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*gʷelH-
- Ancient Greekβέλεμνον (bélemnon)
- Englishbelemnite
From Ancient Greek βέλεμνον (bélemnon, “dart, arrow”) + English -ite.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Danish blemnit, vættelys
- blemnita member of the extinct order Belemnitida
- vættelysa member of the extinct order Belemnitida
Finnish belemniitti
- belemniittia member of the extinct order Belemnitida
French bélemnite
- bélemnitea member of the extinct order Belemnitida
Polish belemnit
- belemnita member of the extinct order Belemnitida
Russian белемни́т
- белемни́т (belemnít)a member of the extinct order Belemnitida
Cite this entry
belemnite. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/belemnite
“belemnite.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/belemnite. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “belemnite,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/belemnite.
Source: belemnite on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.