bilaterian

B3I1L1A1T1E1R1I1A1N1

noun

Any animal that has bilateral symmetry, collectively grouped in the clade Bilateria.

Scrabble 12

Meanings

nounbilaterian (plural bilaterians or bilateria)

plural bilaterians · plural bilateria

  1. biologyAny animal that has bilateral symmetry, collectively grouped in the clade Bilateria.

    In most bilaterians, the gut musculature and most vascular muscles derive from the mesoderm.

    2010, José Xavier-Neto, Marcos Sawada Simoes-Costa, Rodrigo Abe Castro, Hozana Andrade Castillo, Allysson Coelho Sampaio, Ana Paula Azambuja, “Chapter 1.1: Evolutionary Origins of Hearts”, in Nadia Rosenthal, Richard P. Harvey, editors, Heart Development and Regeneration, volume 1, page 12
    2 more examples

    Whatever the phylogenetic relationship among bilaterians and the diploblastic phyla, there was clearly a significant expansion in genomic information within the internode that connects the bilaterian clade to other branches.

    2005, N. S. Sharma, Continuity And Evolution Of Animals, page 91

    Lacking body cavities and both circulatory and excretory organs, with subepidermal nerve plexuses and 'brains' represented, if at all, by thickened anterior commissures, and with simple reproductive set-ups, acoels come close to representing a model stem ancestor for bilaterians.

    2007, J. W. Valentine, “Seeing ghosts: Neoproterozoic bilaterian body plans”, in Patricia Vickers-Rich, Patricia Komarower, editors, The Rise and Fall of the Ediacaran Biota, page 372

Origin

Translations

French bilatérien
  • bilatérienany animal that has bilateral symmetry, collectively grouped in the clade Bilateria
Persian دوسوئی
  • دوسوئیany animal that has bilateral symmetry, collectively grouped in the clade Bilateria
Cite this entry
APA

bilaterian. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bilaterian

MLA

“bilaterian.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bilaterian. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bilaterian,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bilaterian.

Source: bilaterian on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.