Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A body form of certain cnidarians such as jellyfish, consisting of a dome-shaped structure with a mouth underneath surrounded by tentacles, and in most species constituting the free-swimming sexual stage of the organism.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun zoology Special form that cnidarians may turn into.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin Medūsa, Medusa (from the Medusa's snaky locks); see Medusa.]

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Examples

Comments

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  • "The Wake of the Medusa" is a song by the Pogues. I think they're singing about the famous ship Medusa, but seeing as the ship was named after the woman, I figured it counts as a songbird. Snake-like hair notwithstanding.

    February 10, 2008

  • jellyfish, en castellano.

    March 18, 2009