amphibian








noun

  1. any cold-blooded vertebrate of the class Amphibia, comprising frogs and toads, newts and salamanders, and caecilians, the larvae being typically aquatic, breathing by gills, and the adults being typically semiterrestrial, breathing by lungs and through the moist, glandular skin.
  2. an amphibious plant.
  3. an airplane designed for taking off from and landing on both land and water.
  4. Also called amtrac. a flat-bottomed, armed, military vehicle, equipped with both tracks and a rudder, that can travel either on land or in water, used chiefly for landing assault troops.

adjective

  1. belonging or pertaining to the Amphibia.
  2. amphibious(def 2).

noun

  1. any cold-blooded vertebrate of the class Amphibia, typically living on land but breeding in water. Their aquatic larvae (tadpoles) undergo metamorphosis into the adult form. The class includes the newts and salamanders, frogs and toads, and caecilians
  2. a type of aircraft able to land and take off from both water and land
  3. any vehicle able to travel on both water and land

adjective

  1. another word for amphibious
  2. of, relating to, or belonging to the class Amphibia
adj.

1630s, “having two modes of existence, of doubtful nature,” from Greek amphibia, neuter plural of amphibios “living a double life,” from amphi- “of both kinds” (see amphi-) + bios “life” (see bio-).

Formerly used by zoologists to describe all sorts of combined natures (including otters and seals), the biological sense “class of animals between fishes and reptiles that live both on land and in water” and the noun derivative both are first recorded 1835. Amphibia was used in this sense from c.1600 and has been a zoological classification since c.1819.

  1. A cold-blooded, smooth-skinned vertebrate of the class Amphibia. Amphibians hatch as aquatic larvae with gills and, in most species, then undergo metamorphosis into four-legged terrestrial adults with lungs for breathing air. The eggs of amphibians are fertilized externally and lack an amnion. Amphibians evolved from lobe-finned fish during the late Devonian Period and include frogs, toads, newts, salamanders, and caecilians.
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