tunicate
noun, adjective
Forms tunicates
- noun Any of very many chordate marine animals, of the subphyla Tunicata or Urochordata, including the sea squirts.
- adjective Of or pertaining to Tunicata or Urochordata.
- adjective (anatomy, botany) Enclosed in a tunic or mantle; covered or coated with layers.
- adjective (zoology) Having each joint buried in the preceding funnel-shaped one, as in certain antennae of insects.
Synonyms
Etymology
From translingual Tunicata + -ate (noun-forming suffix). Further from Latin tunicātus, perfect passive participle of tunicō (“to clothe with a tunic”).
Rebracketing of tunicate on the basis of -ate (adjective-forming suffix).
Borrowed from Latin tunicātus, see Etymology 1 and -ate (adjective-forming suffix).
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Covered with a tunic; covered or coated with layers; as, a tunicated bulb.
- adjective (a) Having a tunic, or mantle; of or pertaining to the Tunicata.
- noun One of the Tunicata.
Etymology [L. tunicatus, p. p. of tunicare to clothe with a tunic, fr. tunica a tunic.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “tunicate”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details