Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Any of numerous organisms of the group Tetrapoda, usually characterized as those species that have four limbs with digits and those, such as whales and snakes, that are descended from such species. Tetrapoda includes the amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.
  • noun A vertebrate animal with four feet, legs, or leglike appendages.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Four-footed; quadruped; specifically, having only four perfect legs, as certain butterflies; of or pertaining to the Tetrapoda.
  • noun A four-footed animal; a quadruped; specifically, a member of the Tetrapoda.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Zoöl.) An insect characterized by having but four perfect legs, as certain of the butterflies.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Any vertebrate with four limbs.
  • noun Any vertebrate (such as birds or snakes) that have evolved from early tetrapods; especially all members of the superclass Tetrapoda
  • noun Concrete structures with 'arms' used to arrest wave energy along the shore in sea defence projects.
  • adjective Having four limbs or feet

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a vertebrate animal having four feet or legs or leglike appendages

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From tetra- ("four") and -pod, from podos ("foot").

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Examples

  • Might they reflect my ‘real’ interests, or might they perhaps indicate which areas within tetrapod zoology are currently the most happening, interesting or sexy?

    Archive 2007-01-01 Darren Naish 2007

  • Might they reflect my ‘real’ interests, or might they perhaps indicate which areas within tetrapod zoology are currently the most happening, interesting or sexy?

    Happy first birthday Tetrapod Zoology (part II) Darren Naish 2007

  • I will warn you, pre-emptively, that the affinities and ancestry of turtles is one of the most controversial subjects within tetrapod zoology ....

    Happy Christmas, from gigantic Spanish sauropods... or, alas, poor ‘Angloposeidon’ Darren Naish 2006

  • Their attack on a tetrapod is culminated as the bat drops onto the prey, encases it in its wings and bites it hard on the head or neck (Kulzer et al. 1984).

    Archive 2006-06-01 Darren Naish 2006

  • One of my favourite ‘fringe’ subjects within tetrapod zoology concerns the alleged ability of eagles to attack and kill unusually large mammals, including people.

    Archive 2006-01-01 Darren Naish 2006

  • If I were to produce a list of the 100 most exciting discoveries made in tetrapod zoology within the last few years (which I won’t), then up there in the top 20 - at least - would be the Kayan Mentarang animal.

    Archive 2007-01-01 Darren Naish 2007

  • If I were to produce a list of the 100 most exciting discoveries made in tetrapod zoology within the last few years (which I won’t), then up there in the top 20 - at least - would be the Kayan Mentarang animal.

    That’s no mystery carnivore (part I) Darren Naish 2007

  • One of the most asked about questions I’ve encountered in tetrapod zoology concerns the mysterious seals of Siberia’s Lake Baikal.

    The most inconvenient seal Darren Naish 2006

  • From time to time people make the point that some really interesting, major events in tetrapod history must have occurred in ancient Antarctica – if only it wasn’t for that damned ice sheet.

    More on phorusrhacids: the biggest, the fastest, the mostest out-of-placest Darren Naish 2006

  • From time to time people make the point that some really interesting, major events in tetrapod history must have occurred in ancient Antarctica – if only it wasn’t for that damned ice sheet.

    Archive 2006-11-01 Darren Naish 2006

Comments

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  • Concrete tetrapods are supposed to slow coastal erosion.

    August 12, 2008

  • Don't believe it, but the photos are fascinating. At the end of World War II a lot of military hardware was dumped along the coastlines of Australia. It was supposed to slow erosion. Studies in the 80's showed that these miscellaneous bits of concrete and metal just increased turbulence in the intertidal zones and interfered with natural processes, generally increasing erosion. Of course it's possible Japan has different coastal conditions.

    August 12, 2008