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Glite Dictionary
🐚 A sea mollusk 👗 A Greek tunic
chiton

chiton

9.9
An animal that lives on rocks in the sea with a shell of eight hard plates
  • noun
  • /ˈkaɪtən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : quitón
  • At low tide, you can often find a chiton nestled among the seaweed.

Examples

  • Marine biologists studied the unique shell structure of the chiton.

  • The rocky shore was home to a rare chiton clinging tightly to the stones.

  • The chiton clung tightly to the rock.

  • Many chitons can be found along the rocky shore.

  • At low tide, you can often find a chiton nestled among the seaweed.

  • Marine biologists studied the unique shell structure of the chiton.

  • The rocky shore was home to a rare chiton clinging tightly to the stones.

Synonyms

coat-of-mail shell
vschiton
  • Specialized
9.9

A sea animal with eight overlapping hard plates that clings to rocks

is the standard scientific name rather than a descriptive common phrase
sea cradle
vschiton
  • Specialized
9.9

A sea animal with a shell of eight hard plates that clings to rocks

is the standard scientific name rather than a poetic or colloquial label
polyplacophore
vschiton
  • Specialized
9.9

A sea animal with eight hard plates on its back that crawls on rocks

is the common term focusing on appearance rather than scientific classification

Surface Forms

chiton singular
chitons plural

Etymology

Chiton for the sea animal comes from the Greek khitōn, which means 'tunic'. The shell has overlapping plates like layers of cloth, so people thought of the animal as wearing a little 'tunic', and that is why it got this name.