chitinous

1 9.3

Having a hard outer shell like an insect or crab

adjective
/ˈkaɪtɪnəs/

Specialized

: quitinoso

"Aside from their chitinous odor?" Zark snuffled in amusement.
chitinous exoskeleton

Examples

The insect's chitinous shell protects it from predators.
Identity is chitinous, and you have to shed it every now and then to remain healthy and to maintain healthy relationships with others of different identities.

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A small, chitinous, six-armed alien musician named... uh, Thierka Dorret, is running for his life through a translucent ice moon filled with beeping technology.

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It stood watch, its curved protective armor stretching above its head like the chitinous shell of a crab, its lank, tripod metal legs letting it stand gracefully a hundred feet in the air.

Fiction book (1996)
Holding the flailing silacopod with a three-fingered tail, the pet rock broke through the pseudo-beetle's glassy exoskeleton with the crunch of strong chitinous teeth at the end of its long head.

Fiction book (1998)
Rathi slivers are characterized by more decorative head plates, usually a chitinous plate whose design is somewhat reminiscent of the sliver's personal mana alignment: the green Muscle Sliver.

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The chitinous covering of the crab helps keep its internal organs safe.
Researchers discovered a chitinous substance in the deep-sea creature's body.

Surface Forms

chitinous positive

Morphology

chitinous = chitin (transparent) = chitin + ous

The suffix '-ous' is commonly used to form adjectives from nouns, indicating possession or resemblance.

Etymology

The word chitinous comes from chitin, which comes from the old Greek chiton meaning 'tunic' or 'covering'. So, think of a tunic or coat that protects the body, and you will remember that a chitinous shell is a hard, protective covering like that.