Definition of Belemnite

1. Noun. A conical calcareous fossil tapering to a point at one end and with a conical cavity at the other end containing (when unbroken) a small chambered phragmocone from the shell of any of numerous extinct cephalopods of the family Belemnitidae.

Group relationships: Belemnitidae, Family Belemnitidae
Generic synonyms: Fossil
Derivative terms: Belemnitic

Definition of Belemnite

1. n. A conical calcareous fossil, tapering to a point at the lower extremity, with a conical cavity at the other end, where it is ordinarily broken; but when perfect it contains a small chambered cone, called the phragmocone, prolonged, on one side, into a delicate concave blade; the thunderstone. It is the internal shell of a cephalopod related to the sepia, and belonging to an extinct family. The belemnites are found in rocks of the Jurassic and Cretaceous ages.

Definition of Belemnite

1. Noun. (context: paleontology) An extinct group of Mesozoic marine cephalopod, very similar in many ways to the modern squid and closely related to the modern cuttlefish. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Belemnite

1. [n -S]

Medical Definition of Belemnite

1. A conical calcareous fossil, tapering to a point at the lower extremity, with a conical cavity at the other end, where it is ordinarily broken; but when perfect it contains a small chambered cone, called the phragmocone, prolonged, on one side, into a delicate concave blade; the thunderstone. It is the internal shell of a cephalopod related to the sepia, and belonging to an extinct family. The belemnites are found in rocks of the Jurassic and Cretaceous ages. Origin: Gr. Dart, fr. Dart, fr. To throw: cf. F. Belemnite. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Belemnite

belecture
belectured
belectures
belecturing
belee
beleed
beleeing
belees
beleeve
beleft
beleive
beleived
beleiver
beleives
beleiving
belemnite (current term)
belemnites
belemnitic
belemnoid
belendorffite
belepered
beletter
belfried
belfries
belfry
belga
belgard
belgards
belgas
belibel

Literary usage of Belemnite

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Geology and Mineralogy Considered with Reference to Natural Theology by William Buckland (1841)
"belemnite, WE shall conclude our account of chambered shells with a brief ... A belemnite was a compound internal shell, made up of three essential parts, ..."

2. The Ancient Life-history of the Earth: A Comprehensive Outline of the by Henry Alleyne Nicholson (1877)
"A, Restoration of the animal of the belemnite ; B, Diagram showing the complete skeleton of a belemnite, consisting of the chambered ..."

3. ...The Cretaceous Rocks of Britain by Geological Survey of Great Britain, Alfred John Jukes- Browne, William Hill (1903)
"The belemnite Marl. Inland, along the course of the main escarpment, this bed seems to consist entirely of grey marl and yellowish marly chalk generally in ..."

4. The Wonders of Geology: Or A Familiar Exposition of Geological Phenomena by Gideon Algernon Mantell (1840)
"17. Shells of the chalk. 18. Cephalopoda. 19. The belemnite. 28. The nautilus. 21. The ammonite, or cornu ammonis. 22. ..."

5. Organic Remains of a Former World: An Examination of the Mineralized Remains by James Parkinson (1811)
"Whoever (Mr. Platt says) considers the seam or sulcus in the belemnite, will, I think, conclude with me, that the outward lamina is formed latest, ..."

6. Elements of Geology: Intended for the Use of Students by Samuel St. John (1854)
"A division of cryptogamous plants, Sea weeds. Alveola. Socket of a tooth. Alveolus. A chamber of the belemnite. Amorphous. Devoid of regular form. ..."

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