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Glite Dictionary
order Isospondyli

order Isospondyli

9.9
A former group of soft-finned fish like salmon and sardines
  • noun
  • /ˈɔrdər ˌaɪsəˈspɒndɪli/
  • Archaic
: orden Isospondyli
  • The order Isospondyli includes species such as salmon, herring, and tarpon.

Examples

  • Many commercially important fish, like sardines and anchovies, belong to the order Isospondyli.

  • Research on the order Isospondyli has advanced our understanding of fish evolution.

  • The order Isospondyli includes various fish species.

  • Many anglers prefer fish from the order Isospondyli.

  • Many commercially important fish, like sardines and anchovies, belong to the order Isospondyli.

  • Research on the order Isospondyli has advanced our understanding of fish evolution.

  • The order Isospondyli includes species such as salmon, herring, and tarpon.

Synonyms

Isospondyli
vsorder Isospondyli
  • Specialized
9.9

A group of fish with soft fins like salmon and sardines

treats the same group as formerly used and now obsolete taxonomic category

Surface Forms

order Isospondyli singular
order Isospondylis plural

Morphology

order + Isospondyli

The phrase is fully compositional: 'order' denotes a taxonomic rank and 'Isospondyli' is the proper name of that taxon, so the meaning (a taxonomic group of those fishes) follows directly from the constituents. This biological naming pattern is standard and cross-linguistically recognizable, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The name order Isospondyli comes from Greek parts iso and spondyli, meaning 'equal' and 'back bones'. This gives a simple picture: many fish in this group have very similar back bones, so the name helps you remember it is a 'group' of similar fish.