archaeopteryx Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun extinct primitive toothed bird of the Jurassic period having a long feathered tail and hollow bones; usually considered the most primitive of all birds
    Archaeopteryx lithographica; archeopteryx.

WordNet

Ar`chæ*op"te*ryx noun (Also<
  • Archaeopteryx
  • Archæopteryx
)
Etymology
Gr. ancient + wing.
Definitions
  1. (Paleon.) A fossil bird, of the Jurassic period, remarkable for having a long tapering tail of many vertebræ with feathers along each side, and jaws armed with teeth, with other reptilian characteristics.

Webster 1913