Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- Resembling or related to a shark of the genus Selache; pertaining to the Selachii, or having their characters; squaloid or raioid; plagiostomous; in the broadest sense, elasmobranchiate. See also cuts under Elasmobranchii, saw-fish, shark, and skate.
- noun A shark or other plagiostomous fish; any elasmobranch.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Zoöl.) One of the Selachii. See
Illustration in Appendix.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective zoology Pertaining to the genus Selache, consisting of various
sharks ; shark-like.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun any of numerous fishes of the class Chondrichthyes characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton and placoid scales: sharks; rays; skates
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
From scientific Latin Selachē, from the plural of Ancient Greek σέλαχος ("shark").
Support
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Examples
-
a spiny operculum, as in all but the selachian fishes, but with one of skin.
chained_bear commented on the word selachian
"'He may not be very palatable; his appearance cannot recommend him anywhere; but his flesh, like that of most selachians, is reasonably wholesome and nourishing.'"
--Patrick O'Brian, The Far Side of the World, 390
February 23, 2008