cartilaginous fish

noun

: any of a class (Chondrichthyes) of fishes (such as a shark, ray, or chimaera) having the skeleton wholly or largely composed of cartilage compare bony fish, jawless fish

Examples of cartilaginous fish in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
During this voyage, a large number of interesting cartilaginous fish species were found. Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 10 Oct. 2024 Stipulates that these young cartilaginous fish must continue to utilize the area for extended periods, specifically over two weeks. Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024 Rays, of which stingrays are one subgroup, are a type of cartilaginous fish called batoids that inhabit both freshwater and marine habitats throughout the world. Jeanne Timmons, Scientific American, 19 July 2024 By the turn of the century, asexual reproduction had been documented in nearly every branch of vertebrates, with the exception of mammals (which most biologists had written off, for reasons explained below) and cartilaginous fish. Cody Cottier, Discover Magazine, 22 Mar. 2024 However, sharks and other elasmobranchs—a group of cartilaginous fish including rays, skates and sawfish—are very sensitive to electric fields. Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Dec. 2023 Kerby also encountered chimaeras, or ghost sharks, primitive cartilaginous fish with big heads, pointy snouts, fins like airplane wings, long trailing tails and shiny silver-dollar eyes. Susan Casey, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Aug. 2023 Scientists still don’t know why camelids and cartilaginous fishes, like sharks, are the only animals known to make heavy chain antibodies. Christina Szalinski, Discover Magazine, 22 Feb. 2023 Also present is Shenacanthus vermiformis, a cartilaginous fish related to sharks and rays, but with armor plates resembling those of unrelated placoderms — a find that suggests early sharklike species retained the armor-plates present in earlier branches of the fish family tree. Asher Elbein, New York Times, 28 Sep. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1769, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cartilaginous fish was in 1769

Dictionary Entries Near cartilaginous fish

Cite this Entry

“Cartilaginous fish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cartilaginous%20fish. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

cartilaginous fish

noun
: any of the fishes having the skeleton composed largely of cartilage

More from Merriam-Webster on cartilaginous fish

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!