Meanings
plural pinnotheres · alternative pinnotere
- obsoleteA small crab of the genus Pinnotheres, which live symbiotically in the shells of certain molluscs.First known use 17th–19th c.
The shell-fish called a Nacre, liveth even so with the Pinnotere, which is a little creature like unto a Crabfish, and as his porter or usher waits upon him, attending the opening of the Nacre[…].
1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 12, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLCSynonyms: pea crab
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA small crab of the genus Pinnotheres, which live symbiotically in the shells of certain molluscs.
Origin
- Ancient Greekτηρέω“to guard”
- Ancient Greekπίνη“pen shell”
- Ancient Greekπινοτήρης
- Latinpīnotērēs
- Englishpinnothere
From Latin pīnotērēs, from Ancient Greek πινοτήρης (pinotḗrēs), from Ancient Greek πίνη (pínē, “pen shell”) + Ancient Greek τηρέω (tēréō, “to guard”).
More words from Latin, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
pinnothere. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pinnothere
“pinnothere.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pinnothere. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pinnothere,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pinnothere.
Source: pinnothere on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.