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cartilaginous fish
noun
: any of a class (Chondrichthyes) of fishes (such as a shark, ray, or chimaera) having the skeleton wholly or largely composed of cartilage compare bony fish, jawless fish
Examples of cartilaginous fish in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Last year, an ancient, still-active volcano was found off the Canadian coast, covered in millions of giant eggs laid by Pacific white skates (a hauntingly beautiful cartilaginous fish that looks like a stingray).
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 14 Dec. 2024
During this voyage, a large number of interesting cartilaginous fish species were found.
—Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 10 Oct. 2024
Stipulates that these young cartilaginous fish must continue to utilize the area for extended periods, specifically over two weeks.
—Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
Rays, of which stingrays are one subgroup, are a type of cartilaginous fish called batoids that inhabit both freshwater and marine habitats throughout the world.
—Jeanne Timmons, Scientific American, 19 July 2024
By the turn of the century, asexual reproduction had been documented in nearly every branch of vertebrates, with the exception of mammals (which most biologists had written off, for reasons explained below) and cartilaginous fish.
—Cody Cottier, Discover Magazine, 22 Mar. 2024
However, sharks and other elasmobranchs—a group of cartilaginous fish including rays, skates and sawfish—are very sensitive to electric fields.
—Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Dec. 2023
Kerby also encountered chimaeras, or ghost sharks, primitive cartilaginous fish with big heads, pointy snouts, fins like airplane wings, long trailing tails and shiny silver-dollar eyes.
—Susan Casey, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Aug. 2023
Scientists still don’t know why camelids and cartilaginous fishes, like sharks, are the only animals known to make heavy chain antibodies.
—Christina Szalinski, Discover Magazine, 22 Feb. 2023
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Word History
First Known Use
1769, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of cartilaginous fish was
in 1769
Dictionary Entries Near cartilaginous fish
Cite this Entry
“Cartilaginous fish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cartilaginous%20fish. Accessed 23 Dec. 2024.
Kids Definition
cartilaginous fish
noun
: any of the fishes having the skeleton composed largely of cartilage
More from Merriam-Webster on cartilaginous fish
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about cartilaginous fish
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