Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
order Crocodilia

order Crocodilia

6.8
A group of large reptiles that live in water and eat meat, like crocodiles and alligators
  • noun
  • /ˈɔrdər ˌkrɒkəˈdɪliə/
  • Specialized
translation icon : orden Crocodilia
  • The order Crocodilia includes various species like alligators and gharials that thrive in water.

Examples

  • Researchers studied the order Crocodilia to learn more about their unique adaptations for predation.

  • The ancient fossils belong to the order Crocodilia, indicating that these reptiles have existed for millions of years.

  • Other species within the order Crocodilia, such as crocodiles and gharials, were not examined.

    Academic text (2007)

Synonyms

order Crocodylia
vsorder Crocodilia
  • Specialized
8.2

A group of large reptiles that eat meat and live in water and on land, like crocodiles and alligators

is the same group but uses an alternative traditional spelling
Crocodilia
vsorder Crocodilia
  • Specialized
7.7

A group of large meat-eating reptiles that live in water and on land, like crocodiles and alligators

refers to the same animals but uses a different spelling
Crocodylia
vsorder Crocodilia
  • Specialized
9.5

A group of large reptiles that live mostly in water like crocodiles and alligators

focuses on being semi-aquatic not mainly aquatic
order Loricata
vsorder Crocodilia
  • Archaic
9.9

A former scientific group name for animals like crocodiles and alligators

is the present accepted term used by scientists today
Loricata
vsorder Crocodilia
  • Archaic
9.9

An old scientific name for the group of reptiles that includes crocodiles and alligators

is the current accepted scientific name rather than the old one

Surface Forms

order Crocodilia singular
order Crocodilia plural

Morphology

order + Crocodilia

This is a straightforward compositional term: 'order' (a taxonomic grouping) combined with the taxon name 'Crocodilia' yields the taxonomic order that contains crocodiles and related reptiles. The pattern 'order + taxon name' is literal and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

The noun order Crocodilia comes from an old Greek word for 'crocodile', and the word 'order' is used by scientists for a large 'group' of related animals. So order Crocodilia names the big group that includes crocodiles, alligators, caimans and gharials.