brittle star

noun

: any of a class or subclass (Ophiuroidea) of echinoderms that have slender flexible arms distinct from the central disk

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

But not all energy is created equal: thermal energy (i.e., water temperature) dictates brittle star diversity patterns at depths shallower than 2,000 meters, but chemical energy takes over in the deep sea. —Jeffrey Marlow, Discover Magazine, 16 May 2016

O'Hara hopes that the discovery of this ancient lineage of brittle star will excite the public and academic community enough to justify funding for further taxonomic deep sea research. —Daisy Hernandez, Popular Mechanics, 21 June 2021

Scientists from the French Natural History Museum collected an ancient specimen of brittle star (Ophiojura) in 2011. —Daisy Hernandez, Popular Mechanics, 21 June 2021

By chance, researchers happened upon this ancient genus of brittle star—a distant relative of the starfish—during a 2011 trawling expedition on the Banc Durand seamount off the coast of New Caledonia in the Pacific. —Daisy Hernandez, Popular Mechanics, 21 June 2021

The carcasses of any creatures that can’t flee – worms, burrowing crabs, brittle stars – lie motionless in the mud. —Sarah Kaplan, Twin Cities, 11 June 2019

The carcasses of any creatures that can’t flee – worms, burrowing crabs, brittle stars – lie motionless in the mud. —Sarah Kaplan, Twin Cities, 11 June 2019

The carcasses of any creatures that can’t flee – worms, burrowing crabs, brittle stars – lie motionless in the mud. —Sarah Kaplan, Twin Cities, 11 June 2019

The carcasses of any creatures that can’t flee – worms, burrowing crabs, brittle stars – lie motionless in the mud. —Sarah Kaplan, Twin Cities, 11 June 2019

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Word History

First Known Use

1841, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

brittle star

noun

: any of a group of sea animals similar to the related starfishes but having slender flexible arms