solenogaster

9.9

A small, wormlike sea animal that lives on the deep ocean floor with no shell and a soft spiny body

noun
/ˌsɒlɪˈnɒɡəstər/

Specialized

: solenogáster

Unlike most mollusks, a solenogaster does not have a shell, but features a soft and spiny mantle.

Examples

The deep-sea expedition collected several fascinating specimens of solenogaster from the ocean floor.
Many solenogasters inhabit deep-sea environments.
A solenogaster moves slowly along the substrate, searching for tiny prey among the sediment.
The solenogaster is a fascinating marine creature.
A solenogaster moves slowly along the substrate, searching for tiny prey among the sediment.
The deep-sea expedition collected several fascinating specimens of solenogaster from the ocean floor.
Unlike most mollusks, a solenogaster does not have a shell, but features a soft and spiny mantle.

Synonyms

aplacophoran

vssolenogaster

Specialized

9.9

A small soft sea animal like a worm with no shell and tiny spines on its skin

adds that it is small rather than being just any deep-water form

Surface Forms

solenogaster singular

solenogasters plural

Morphology

solenogaster = solen + gaster

A technical taxonomic coinage from specialized combining forms; the components are not productive or informative for an average B1 learner and do not yield the sense of the marine mollusk.

Etymology

Solenogaster comes from Greek parts solen- meaning 'tube' and -gaster meaning 'stomach' or 'belly', and the -gaster part is the same root you see in gastric ('about the stomach'). So a solenogaster is a long, wormlike mollusk with a soft, belly-like body instead of a hard shell.