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ammonitic

ammonitic

9.9
Relating to ammonites, extinct sea animals with coiled shells
  • adjective
  • /əˈmɒnɪtɪk/
  • Specialized
: amonítico
  • The ammonitic shell pattern is easily recognized in many museum fossils.

Examples

  • Paleontologists use ammonitic features to date certain rock layers.

  • Many ammonitic species thrived in the ancient oceans.

  • The ammonitic suture lines are more complex than those of earlier cephalopods.

  • The ammonitic fossils were discovered in the limestone.

  • Paleontologists use ammonitic features to date certain rock layers.

  • The ammonitic shell pattern is easily recognized in many museum fossils.

  • The ammonitic suture lines are more complex than those of earlier cephalopods.

Surface Forms

ammonitic positive

Morphology

ammonitic = ammonite (transparent) = ammonite + ic

Clearly formed from the noun 'ammonite' plus the adjectival suffix '-ic', meaning 'relating to ammonites'.

Etymology

Ammonitic comes from ammonite, the spiral fossil named after the Egyptian god Amun, also called Ammon, because the shell looks like his curled 'horns'. So ammonitic means 'relating to ammonites' or to their shell patterns.