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Glite Dictionary
Odontoceti

Odontoceti

9.9
A group of whales with teeth, like dolphins and porpoises
  • noun
  • /oʊˈdɒntəˌsɛti/
  • Specialized
translation icon : odontocetos
  • The Odontoceti include animals such as dolphins, porpoises, and sperm whales.

Examples

  • Unlike baleen whales, members of the Odontoceti have well-developed teeth for hunting prey.

  • Scientists study Odontoceti to better understand echolocation and marine mammal intelligence.

  • The Odontoceti suborder includes many fascinating species.

  • Many scientists study Odontoceti to understand their behavior.

  • The Odontoceti suborder includes dolphins and sperm whales, which are known for their intelligence and complex social structures.

  • Many species within the Odontoceti suborder use echolocation to navigate and hunt for food.

  • The Odontoceti suborder exhibits a wide range of sizes, from the small harbor porpoise to the massive sperm whale.

Synonyms

toothed whale
vsOdontoceti
1 5.0

A whale that has teeth and eats fish or squid, like dolphins and porpoises

is the scientific suborder name for the same tooth bearing whales

Surface Forms

Odontoceti singular
Odontocetis plural

Morphology

Odontoceti = odontocete (opaque) = odonto + ceti

The form 'Odontoceti' is a regular Latin-based plural of 'odontocete' using -i, but that plural pattern is not fully transparent to most learners.

Etymology

The word Odontoceti comes from Greek parts odont- meaning 'tooth' and -ceti meaning 'whale', and odont- is like orthodontist who works on teeth while -ceti is like cetacean for whales. So Odontoceti means 'toothed whales', which is why the group includes dolphins, porpoises and sperm whales.