family Fissurellidae

9.9

A group of sea snails with a hole or slit in their shells

noun
/ˈfæmɪli fɪʃəˈrɛlɪdeɪ/

Specialized

: familia Fissurellidae

Many members of the family Fissurellidae are recognized by the distinctive hole or slit in their shells.

Examples

The family Fissurellidae includes a variety of keyhole limpets found in oceans worldwide.
Researchers discovered a new species within the family Fissurellidae during the marine survey.
The family Fissurellidae is known for its unique shell shape.
Many species in the family Fissurellidae are found in coastal waters.
Many members of the family Fissurellidae are recognized for their distinctive holes or slits in their shells.
Researchers discovered a new species belonging to the family Fissurellidae during a recent marine survey.
The family Fissurellidae consists of various keyhole limpets that inhabit oceans around the world.

Synonyms

Fissurellidae

vsfamily Fissurellidae

Specialized

9.9

A family of sea snails with a shell that has a hole or slit at the top

gives the family definition without mentioning the shell's hole detail

Surface Forms

family Fissurellidae singular

families Fissurellidae plural

Morphology

family + Fissurellidae

This is a compositional taxonomic noun phrase: 'family' signals a taxonomic rank and 'Fissurellidae' is the name of that group, so the meaning ('the family called Fissurellidae, a group of marine gastropods') is directly derivable from the constituents. Scientific naming conventions (family + taxon name) are cross-linguistically regular, so a learner who knows both words would readily infer the intended classification. Although 'Fissurellidae' is a specialized proper name, its role in the phrase is transparent.

Etymology

Family Fissurellidae comes from the word fissure, which means a small split or hole, because many of these sea snails have a little hole or slit at the top of their shell. That hole looks like a keyhole, so the name is used for the group of 'keyhole limpets'.