Plural Nouns Starting with A

Abdominales (n. pl.) A group including the greater part of fresh-water fishes, and many marine ones, having the ventral fins under the abdomen behind the pectorals.

Abdominalia (n. pl.) A group of cirripeds having abdominal appendages.

Aborigines (n. pl.) The earliest known inhabitants of a country; native races.

Aborigines (n. pl.) The original fauna and flora of a geographical area

Abranchiata (n. pl.) A group of annelids, so called because the species composing it have no special organs of respiration.

Academicals (n. pl.) The articles of dress prescribed and worn at some colleges and universities.

Acalephae (n. pl.) A group of Coelenterata, including the Medusae or jellyfishes, and hydroids; -- so called from the stinging power they possess. Sometimes called sea nettles.

Acanthocephala (n. pl.) A group of intestinal worms, having the proboscis armed with recurved spines.

Acanthopteri (n. pl.) A group of teleostean fishes having spiny fins. See Acanthopterygii.

Acanthopterygii (n. pl.) An order of fishes having some of the rays of the dorsal, ventral, and anal fins unarticulated and spinelike, as the perch.

Acarina (n. pl.) The group of Arachnida which includes the mites and ticks. Many species are parasitic, and cause diseases like the itch and mange.

Acates (n. pl.) See Cates.

Accipitres (n. pl.) The order that includes rapacious birds. They have a hooked bill, and sharp, strongly curved talons. There are three families, represented by the vultures, the falcons or hawks, and the owls.

Accouterments (n. pl.) Alt. of Accoutrements

Accoutrements (n. pl.) Dress; trappings; equipment; specifically, the devices and equipments worn by soldiers.

Acephala (n. pl.) That division of the Mollusca which includes the bivalve shells, like the clams and oysters; -- so called because they have no evident head. Formerly the group included the Tunicata, Brachiopoda, and sometimes the Bryozoa. See Mollusca.

Acephali (n. pl.) A fabulous people reported by ancient writers to have heads.

Acephali (n. pl.) A Christian sect without a leader.

Acephali (n. pl.) Bishops and certain clergymen not under regular diocesan control.

Acephali (n. pl.) A class of levelers in the time of K. Henry I.

Acetabulifera (n. pl.) The division of Cephalopoda in which the arms are furnished with cup-shaped suckers, as the cuttlefishes, squids, and octopus; the Dibranchiata. See Cephalopoda.

Acinetae (n. pl.) A group of suctorial Infusoria, which in the adult stage are stationary. See Suctoria.

Acontia (n. pl.) Threadlike defensive organs, composed largely of nettling cells (cnidae), thrown out of the mouth or special pores of certain Actiniae when irritated.

Acraspeda (n. pl.) A group of acalephs, including most of the larger jellyfishes; the Discophora.

Acrita (n. pl.) The lowest groups of animals, in which no nervous system has been observed.

Actinaria (n. pl.) A large division of Anthozoa, including those which have simple tentacles and do not form stony corals. Sometimes, in a wider sense, applied to all the Anthozoa, expert the Alcyonaria, whether forming corals or not.

Actinotrocha (n. pl.) A peculiar larval form of Phoronis, a genus of marine worms, having a circle of ciliated tentacles.

Actinozoa (n. pl.) A group of Coelenterata, comprising the Anthozoa and Ctenophora. The sea anemone, or actinia, is a familiar example.

Actinula (n. pl.) A kind of embryo of certain hydroids (Tubularia), having a stellate form.

Addlings (n. pl.) Earnings.

Adversaria (n. pl.) A miscellaneous collection of notes, remarks, or selections; a commonplace book; also, commentaries or notes.

Aegicrania (n. pl.) Sculptured ornaments, used in classical architecture, representing rams' heads or skulls.

Aerobies (n. pl.) Microorganisms which live in contact with the air and need oxygen for their growth; as the microbacteria which form on the surface of putrefactive fluids.

Afterings (n. pl.) The last milk drawn in milking; strokings.

Afterpains (n. pl.) The pains which succeed childbirth, as in expelling the afterbirth.

Agrappes (n. pl.) Hooks and eyes for armor, etc.

Ailuroidea (n. pl.) A group of the Carnivora, which includes the cats, civets, and hyenas.

Albigenses (n. pl.) Alt. of Albigeois

Albigeois (n. pl.) A sect of reformers opposed to the church of Rome in the 12th centuries.

Alcyonacea (n. pl.) A group of soft-bodied Alcyonaria, of which Alcyonium is the type. See Illust. under Alcyonaria.

Alcyonaria (n. pl.) One of the orders of Anthozoa. It includes the Alcyonacea, Pennatulacea, and Gorgonacea.

Alcyones (n. pl.) The kingfishers.

Alectorides (n. pl.) A group of birds including the common fowl and the pheasants.

Allantoidea (n. pl.) The division of Vertebrata in which the embryo develops an allantois. It includes reptiles, birds, and mammals.

Altrices (n. pl.) Nursers, -- a term applied to those birds whose young are hatched in a very immature and helpless condition, so as to require the care of their parents for some time; -- opposed to praecoces.

Ambages (n. pl.) A circuit; a winding. Hence: Circuitous way or proceeding; quibble; circumlocution; indirect mode of speech.

Amblypoda (n. pl.) A group of large, extinct, herbivorous mammals, common in the Tertiary formation of the United States.

Ametabola (n. pl.) A group of insects which do not undergo any metamorphosis.

Amioidei (n. pl.) An order of ganoid fishes of which Amia is the type. See Bowfin and Ganoidei.

Ammonitoidea (n. pl.) An extensive group of fossil cephalopods often very abundant in Mesozoic rocks. See Ammonite.

Amniota (n. pl.) That group of vertebrates which develops in its embryonic life the envelope called the amnion. It comprises the reptiles, the birds, and the mammals.

Amoebea (n. pl.) That division of the Rhizopoda which includes the amoeba and similar forms.

Amorphozoa (n. pl.) Animals without a mouth or regular internal organs, as the sponges.

Amphibia (n. pl.) One of the classes of vertebrates.

Amphibiotica (n. pl.) A division of insects having aquatic larvae.

Amphictyons (n. pl.) Deputies from the confederated states of ancient Greece to a congress or council. They considered both political and religious matters.

Amphineura (n. pl.) A division of Mollusca remarkable for the bilateral symmetry of the organs and the arrangement of the nerves.

Amphipoda (n. pl.) A numerous group of fourteen -- footed Crustacea, inhabiting both fresh and salt water. The body is usually compressed laterally, and the anterior pairs or legs are directed downward and forward, but the posterior legs are usually turned upward and backward. The beach flea is an example. See Tetradecapoda and Arthrostraca.

Amphirhina (n. pl.) A name applied to the elasmobranch fishes, because the nasal sac is double.

Amphiscii (n. pl.) Alt. of Amphiscians

Amphiscians (n. pl.) The inhabitants of the tropic, whose shadows in one part of the year are cast to the north, and in the other to the south, according as the sun is south or north of their zenith.

Anacanthini (n. pl.) Alt. of Anacanths

Anacanths (n. pl.) A group of teleostean fishes destitute of spiny fin-rays, as the cod.

Anaerobies (n. pl.) Microorganisms which do not require oxygen, but are killed by it.

Anagogics (n. pl.) Mystical interpretations or studies, esp. of the Scriptures.

Anakim (n. pl.) Alt. of Anaks

Anaks (n. pl.) A race of giants living in Palestine.

Analects (n. pl.) Alt. of Analecta

Analecta (n. pl.) A collection of literary fragments.

Anallantoidea (n. pl.) The division of Vertebrata in which no allantois is developed. It includes amphibians, fishes, and lower forms.

Anarthropoda (n. pl.) One of the divisions of Articulata in which there are no jointed legs, as the annelids; -- opposed to Arthropoda.

Androphagi (n. pl.) Cannibals; man-eaters; anthropophagi.

Angles (n. pl.) An ancient Low German tribe, that settled in Britain, which came to be called Engla-land (Angleland or England). The Angles probably came from the district of Angeln (now within the limits of Schleswig), and the country now Lower Hanover, etc.

Anisodactyla (n. pl.) Alt. of Anisodactyls

Anisodactyls (n. pl.) A group of herbivorous mammals characterized by having the hoofs in a single series around the foot, as the elephant, rhinoceros, etc.

Anisodactyls (n. pl.) A group of perching birds which are anisodactylous.

Anisopleura (n. pl.) A primary division of gastropods, including those having spiral shells. The two sides of the body are unequally developed.

Anisopoda (n. pl.) A division of Crustacea, which, in some its characteristics, is intermediate between Amphipoda and Isopoda.

Annals (n. pl.) A relation of events in chronological order, each event being recorded under the year in which it happened.

Annals (n. pl.) Historical records; chronicles; history.

Annals (n. pl.) The record of a single event or item.

Annals (n. pl.) A periodic publication, containing records of discoveries, transactions of societies, etc.; as "Annals of Science."

Annats (n. pl.) Alt. of Annates

Annates (n. pl.) The first year's profits of a spiritual preferment, anciently paid by the clergy to the pope; first fruits. In England, they now form a fund for the augmentation of poor livings.

Annelida (n. pl.) A division of the Articulata, having the body formed of numerous rings or annular segments, and without jointed legs. The principal subdivisions are the Chaetopoda, including the Oligochaeta or earthworms and Polychaeta or marine worms; and the Hirudinea or leeches. See Chaetopoda.

Annellata (n. pl.) See Annelida.

Annulata (n. pl.) A class of articulate animals, nearly equivalent to Annelida, including the marine annelids, earthworms, Gephyrea, Gymnotoma, leeches, etc. See Annelida.

Annuloida (n. pl.) A division of the Articulata, including the annelids and allied groups; sometimes made to include also the helminths and echinoderms.

Annulosa (n. pl.) A division of the Invertebrata, nearly equivalent to the Articulata. It includes the Arthoropoda and Anarthropoda. By some zoologists it is applied to the former only.

Anomura (n. pl.) Alt. of Anomoura

Anomoura (n. pl.) A group of decapod Crustacea, of which the hermit crab in an example.

Anopla (n. pl.) One of the two orders of Nemerteans. See Nemertina.

Anoplura (n. pl.) A group of insects which includes the lice.

Anseres (n. pl.) A Linnaean order of aquatic birds swimming by means of webbed feet, as the duck, or of lobed feet, as the grebe. In this order were included the geese, ducks, auks, divers, gulls, petrels, etc.

Anseriformes (n. pl.) A division of birds including the geese, ducks, and closely allied forms.

Antecians (n. pl.) See Ant/cians.

Antes (n. pl.) Antae. See Anta.

Anthobranchia (n. pl.) A division of nudibranchiate Mollusca, in which the gills form a wreath or cluster upon the posterior part of the back. See Nudibranchiata, and Doris.

Anthozoa (n. pl.) The class of the Coelenterata which includes the corals and sea anemones. The three principal groups or orders are Acyonaria, Actinaria, and Madreporaria.

Anthropidae (n. pl.) The group that includes man only.

Anthropoidea (n. pl.) The suborder of primates which includes the monkeys, apes, and man.

Anthropomorpha (n. pl.) The manlike, or anthropoid, apes.

Anthropophagi (n. pl.) Man eaters; cannibals.

Antiae (n. pl.) The two projecting feathered angles of the forehead of some birds; the frontal points.

Antilegomena (n. pl.) Certain books of the New Testament which were for a time not universally received, but which are now considered canonical. These are the Epistle to the Hebrews, the Epistles of James and Jude, the second Epistle of Peter, the second and third Epistles of John, and the Revelation. The undisputed books are called the Homologoumena.

Antiparallels (n. pl.) Straight

Antiscians (n. pl.) Alt. of Antiscii

Antiscii (n. pl.) The inhabitants of the earth, living on different sides of the equator, whose shadows at noon are cast in opposite directions.

Anura (n. pl.) One of the orders of amphibians characterized by the absence of a tail, as the frogs and toads.

Apaches (n. pl.) A group of nomadic North American Indians including several tribes native of Arizona, New Mexico, etc.

Aphaniptera (n. pl.) A group of wingless insects, of which the flea in the type. See Flea.

Aphides (n. pl.) See Aphis.

Aphthae (n. pl.) Roundish pearl-colored specks or flakes in the mouth, on the lips, etc., terminating in white sloughs. They are commonly characteristic of thrush.

Apices (n. pl.) See Apex.

Aplacentata (n. pl.) Mammals which have no placenta.

Aplacophora (n. pl.) A division of Amphineura in which the body is naked or covered with slender spines or setae, but is without shelly plates.

Apneumona (n. pl.) An order of holothurians in which the internal respiratory organs are wanting; -- called also Apoda or Apodes.

Apocrypha (n. pl.) Something, as a writing, that is of doubtful authorship or authority; -- formerly used also adjectively.

Apocrypha (n. pl.) Specif.: Certain writings which are received by some Christians as an authentic part of the Holy Scriptures, but are rejected by others.

Apodes (n. pl.) An order of fishes without ventral fins, including the eels.

Apodes (n. pl.) A group of holothurians destitute of suckers. See Apneumona.

Aporosa (n. pl.) A group of corals in which the coral is not porous; -- opposed to Perforata.

Apotheosis (n. pl.) The act of elevating a mortal to the rank of, and placing him among, "the gods;" deification.

Apotheosis (n. pl.) Glorification; exaltation.

Appendiculata (n. pl.) An order of annelids; the Polych/ta.

Aprocta (n. pl.) A group of Turbellaria in which there is no anal aperture.

Apsides (n. pl.) See Apsis.

Aptera (n. pl.) Insects without wings, constituting the seventh Linnaen order of insects, an artificial group, which included Crustacea, spiders, centipeds, and even worms. These animals are now placed in several distinct classes and orders.

Apteria (n. pl.) Naked spaces between the feathered areas of birds. See Pteryliae.

Apteryges (n. pl.) An order of birds, including the genus Apteryx.

Arachnida (n. pl.) One of the classes of Arthropoda. See Illustration in Appendix.

Arachnoidea (n. pl.) Same as Arachnida.

Araneida (n. pl.) Alt. of Araneoidea

Araneoidea (n. pl.) See Araneina.

Araneina (n. pl.) The order of Arachnida that includes the spiders.

Archencephala (n. pl.) The division that includes man alone.

Archiannelida (n. pl.) A group of Annelida remarkable for having no external segments or distinct ventral nerve ganglions.

Arctisca (n. pl.) A group of Arachnida. See Illust. in Appendix.

Arctoidea (n. pl.) A group of the Carnivora, that includes the bears, weasels, etc.

Arles (n. pl.) An earnest; earnest money; money paid to bind a bargain.

Arthrogastra (n. pl.) A division of the Arachnida, having the abdomen annulated, including the scorpions, harvestmen, etc.; pedipalpi.

Arthropoda (n. pl.) A large division of Articulata, embracing all those that have jointed legs. It includes Insects, Arachnida, Pychnogonida, and Crustacea.

Arthropomata (n. pl.) One of the orders of Branchiopoda. See Branchiopoda.

Arthrostraca (n. pl.) One of the larger divisions of Crustacea, so called because the thorax and abdomen are both segmented; Tetradecapoda. It includes the Amphipoda and Isopoda.

Artiodactyla (n. pl.) One of the divisions of the ungulate animals. The functional toes of the hind foot are even in number, and the third digit of each foot (corresponding to the middle finger in man) is asymmetrical and paired with the fourth digit, as in the hog, the sheep, and the ox; -- opposed to Perissodactyla.

Asci (n. pl.) See Ascus.

Ascidioidea (n. pl.) A group of Tunicata, often shaped like a two-necked bottle. The group includes, social, and compound species. The gill is a netlike structure within the oral aperture. The integument is usually leathery in texture. See Illustration in Appendix.

Ascii (n. pl.) Alt. of Ascians

Ascians (n. pl.) Persons who, at certain times of the year, have no shadow at noon; -- applied to the inhabitants of the torrid zone, who have, twice a year, a vertical sun.

Ashes (n. pl.) The earthy or mineral particles of combustible substances remaining after combustion, as of wood or coal.

Ashes (n. pl.) Specifically: The remains of the human body when burnt, or when "returned to dust" by natural decay.

Ashes (n. pl.) The color of ashes; deathlike paleness.

Asiphonea (n. pl.) Alt. of Asiphonida

Asiphonata (n. pl.) Alt. of Asiphonida

Asiphonida (n. pl.) A group of bivalve mollusks destitute of siphons, as the oyster; the asiphonate mollusks.

Aspidobranchia (n. pl.) A group of Gastropoda, with limpetlike shells, including the abalone shells and keyhole limpets.

Assets (n. pl.) Property of a deceased person, subject by law to the payment of his debts and legacies; -- called assets because sufficient to render the executor or administrator liable to the creditors and legatees, so far as such goods or estate may extend.

Assets (n. pl.) Effects of an insolvent debtor or bankrupt, applicable to the payment of debts.

Assets (n. pl.) The entire property of all sorts, belonging to a person, a corporation, or an estate; as, the assets of a merchant or a trading association; -- opposed to liabilities.

Asterioidea (n. pl.) Alt. of Asteridea

Asteridea (n. pl.) A class of Echinodermata including the true starfishes. The rays vary in number and always have ambulacral grooves below. The body is star-shaped or pentagonal.

Athecata (n. pl.) A division of Hydroidea in which the zooids are naked, or not inclosed in a capsule. See Tubularian.

Atlantes (n. pl.) Figures or half figures of men, used as columns to support an entablature; -- called also telamones. See Caryatides.

Atlantides (n. pl.) The Pleiades or seven stars, fabled to have been the daughters of Atlas.

Auricularia (n. pl.) A kind of holothurian larva, with soft, blunt appendages. See Illustration in Appendix.

Auriculars (n. pl.) A circle of feathers surrounding the opening of the ear of birds.

Autophagi (n. pl.) Birds which are able to run about and obtain their own food as soon as hatched.

Aves (n. pl.) The class of Vertebrata that includes the birds.

Avicularia (n. pl.) See prehensile processes on the cells of some Bryozoa, often having the shape of a bird's bill.

Axillaries (n. pl.) Alt. of Axillars

Axillars (n. pl.) Feathers connecting the under surface of the wing and the body, and concealed by the closed wing.

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