caecilian
/sɪˈsɪliən/ noun
Forms caecilians
- noun Any of a group of burrowing amphibians of the order Gymnophiona that resemble earthworms or snakes.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Latin caecilia + -an, feminine form of Caecilius, from Caeculus + -ius, from caecus + -ulus.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A limbless amphibian belonging to the order Cæciliæ or Ophimorpha. See Ophiomorpha. [Written also coecilian.]
Etymology [L. caecus blind. So named from the supposed blindness of the species, the eyes being very minute.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “caecilian”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details