Argentinosaurus

noun

Ar·​gen·​ti·​no·​sau·​rus ˌär-jən-¦tē-nə-¦sȯr-əs 

1

: a genus of very large sauropod dinosaurs containing a single known species (Argentinosaurus huinculensis) that lived during the Cretaceous period and had a massive body with a very long neck

These seven vertebrae belonged to Argentinosaurus, a long-necked vegetarian dinosaur, or sauropod, that may have outweighed other giants by 40 metric tons.

—Tim Appenzeller, Science, 16 Dec. 1994

2

argentinosaurus or argentinosaur

ˌär-jən-ˈtē-nə-ˌsȯr 

plural argentinosauruses or argentinosaurs : a dinosaur of the genus Argentinosaurus

This was the year news broke of ongoing excavation of the biggest dinosaur found to date: argentinosaurus, an apatosaurus-looking creature weighing 100 tons.

—Bill Dietrich, Seattle Times, 26 Dec. 1995

This family included argentinosaur, thought to be the largest animal ever to walk the Earth …

—Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana), 28 Sept. 2001

Note: The only fossil specimen for this genus was found in Argentine Patagonia and is one of the largest dinosaurs ever discovered.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin, from Argentina, country in South America + -o- -o- + -saurus -saurus

First Known Use

1994, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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