conodont
noun
co·no·dont
ˈkō-nə-ˌdänt 
ˈkä-
ˈkä-
: a Paleozoic toothlike fossil that is probably the remains of an extinct eellike marine animal that may be an invertebrate or primitive vertebrate
also
: the animal from which conodonts are derived
Examples of conodont in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
One of the earliest creatures with teeth were conodonts, an eel-like creature that first appeared around 500 million years ago.
—
Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 17 Feb. 2025
By studying the temperature record of conodonts from around the world, the researchers were able to show a remarkable rise of temperatures in the low and mid latitudes, resulting in chaotic oceanic circulation patterns.
—David Bressan, Forbes, 15 Sep. 2024
Tully has been compared to gastropods (slugs and snails), conodonts (an extinct group of jawless vertebrates), polychaetes (segmented marine worms), nemerteans (ribbon worms), and nectocarids (a squid-like Cambrian organism) in the ensuing decades.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 25 Apr. 2023
Earlier researchers identified tiny teeth within some of the alien goldfish fossils, which led them to think the animal was an extinct eel-like fish called a conodont, per the Times.
—Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Sep. 2022
Surrounding remains—fossils of tiny, extinct marine animals called graptolites and conodonts—served as biomarkers to help confirm when the early scorpions wandered the earth.
—Katie Camero, WSJ, 16 Jan. 2020
In several pulses across the Devonian, ocean oxygen levels dropped precipitously, which dealt serious blows to conodonts and ancient shelled relatives of squid and octopuses called goniatites.
—Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 30 Sep. 2019
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Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 17 Feb. 2025
By studying the temperature record of conodonts from around the world, the researchers were able to show a remarkable rise of temperatures in the low and mid latitudes, resulting in chaotic oceanic circulation patterns.
—David Bressan, Forbes, 15 Sep. 2024
Tully has been compared to gastropods (slugs and snails), conodonts (an extinct group of jawless vertebrates), polychaetes (segmented marine worms), nemerteans (ribbon worms), and nectocarids (a squid-like Cambrian organism) in the ensuing decades.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 25 Apr. 2023
Earlier researchers identified tiny teeth within some of the alien goldfish fossils, which led them to think the animal was an extinct eel-like fish called a conodont, per the Times.
—Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Sep. 2022
Surrounding remains—fossils of tiny, extinct marine animals called graptolites and conodonts—served as biomarkers to help confirm when the early scorpions wandered the earth.
—Katie Camero, WSJ, 16 Jan. 2020
In several pulses across the Devonian, ocean oxygen levels dropped precipitously, which dealt serious blows to conodonts and ancient shelled relatives of squid and octopuses called goniatites.
—Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 30 Sep. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Conodont.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conodont. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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