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bivalve

bivalve

2 6.3
A water animal with a soft body inside two hinged shells, like a clam or oyster
  • noun
  • /ˈbaɪvælv/
translation icon : bivalvo
  • Many chefs prefer to use local bivalves in their dishes due to their unique flavors and freshness.
  • freshwater bivalve
  • suspension-feeding bivalves
  • bivalve species

I mean, octopuses are on the same lineage as bivalves and scallops and so on.

Examples

  • The seaweed absorbs the excess nutrients from the fish, and the bivalves consume the nutrient-induced excess phytoplankton growth.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Two-shelled mollusks called bivalves, bacteria inhabiting the bivalves' gills, and seagrasses themselves all live symbiotically, new research reveals.

    Blog text (30)
  • I'll go for any bivalve or mollusk from Cape Cod during the late summer or early fall.

    Blog text (20)
  • A grain of sand slips into an oyster... and irritates the bivalve.

  • Enhanced filtration by larger populations of native bivalves may even improve degraded waters.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Adult populations of these bivalves suffer severe mortality from feeding on high concentrations of the toxic microalga.

    Academic text (2000)
  • And within this massive group, we find the bivalves, a class of mollusk which include clams, oysters, mussels, and scallops.

  • At the seafood restaurant, I ordered a plate of fresh bivalves, including clams and oysters.

  • The biologist studied the impact of pollution on native bivalves in the coastal waters.

Synonyms

mollusk
vsbivalve
  • US
11 5.6

A soft-bodied animal like a snail or clam that often has a shell

is narrower, meaning only two-shelled animals rather than all mollusks
Pelecypoda
vsbivalve
  • Archaic
9.9

A group of shellfish with two hinged shells like clams or oysters

is the common everyday name for the same two-shelled animals
pelecypod
vsbivalve
  • Archaic
9.9

A sea animal with a soft body inside two shells joined at one side, like a clam or oyster

is the broad name for that group rather than a single specimen term
Bivalvia
vsbivalve
  • Specialized
9.9

Water animals with two shells joined by a hinge, like oysters or clams

is the everyday group name for those same two-shelled animals
lamellibranch
vsbivalve
  • Archaic
9.9

An animal with a soft body and two shells like a clam or oyster

is the general two-shelled animal without mentioning gill type

Surface Forms

bivalve singular
bivalves plural

Morphology

bivalve = valve (transparent) = bi + valve

Formed from the productive prefix 'bi-' meaning 'two' + 'valve', so the meaning 'having two valves/shell halves' is directly inferable.

Etymology

The word bivalve comes from bi- 'two' and valve 'door' or 'leaf', and it names animals with a soft body inside two shells that open and close like a pair of doors, such as clams and oysters.