artiodactyla Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun an order of hooved mammals of the subclass Eutheria (including pigs and peccaries and hippopotami and members of the suborder Ruminantia) having an even number of functional toes
    order Artiodactyla.

WordNet

Ar`ti*o*dac"ty*la noun plural
Etymology
NL., fr. Gr. even + finger or toe.
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) One of the divisions of the ungulate animals. The functional toes of the hind foot are even in number, and the third digit of each foot (corresponding to the middle finger in man) is asymmetrical and paired with the fourth digit, as in the hog, the sheep, and the ox; -- opposed to Perissodactyla.

Webster 1913