dinosaur

noun

di·no·saur | \ ˈdī-nə-ˌsȯr

Definition of dinosaur

1 : any of a group (Dinosauria) of extinct often very large chiefly terrestrial carnivorous or herbivorous reptiles of the Mesozoic era

2 : any of various large extinct reptiles (such as ichthyosaurs) other than the true dinosaurs

3 : one that is impractically large, out-of-date, or obsolete The factory is now a rusting dinosaur.

Other Words from dinosaur Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about dinosaur

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Other Words from dinosaur

dinosaurian \ ˌdī-nə-ˈsȯr-ē-ən

\ adjective

dinosauric \ ˌdī-nə-ˈsȯr-ik

\ adjective

Examples of dinosaur in a Sentence

The old factory is now a rusting dinosaur. The character she plays is a dinosaur—a former beauty queen who is living in the past.

Recent Examples on the Web

Dominating that world were, of course, the dinosaurs. — John Steele Gordon, WSJ, "‘Dinosaurs Rediscovered’ Review: No Longer Dragging Their Tails," 9 May 2019 Ambopteryx is just the second dinosaur ever discovered with them. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Whoa, Look at This Bird-Bat Dinosaur," 8 May 2019 This is due to the fact that bedbugs glom on to animals that live in stationary homes (nests, burrows), which was a habit that dinosaurs—who were roamers—never adopted. — Daisy Hernandez, Popular Mechanics, "Surprisingly, Bed Bugs Are As Old As Dinosaurs," 16 May 2019 Image Before the giant ape and the cancan chorus, before the daydreaming misfit and the defiant dancer, before even the dinosaurs and the dragons, first there were the RVs. — Michael Paulson, New York Times, "Four Musicals on Three Continents: An Australian Company’s Big Bet," 5 July 2018 Westgate Wednesdays Celebrate summer with princesses, pirates, dinosaurs and more characters at Westgate's splash pad amid prize giveaways, music and dancing. — Sonja Haller, azcentral, "Best kids things to do in Phoenix in July: Splash pad parties, shark feeds and free fun," 28 June 2018 The impact of an asteroid about six miles in diameter some 65 million years ago led to the extinction of the dinosaurs and many other species. — William Harwood, CBS News, "NASA asteroid-watchers team up on emergency plan with White House, FEMA," 20 June 2018 Over many years of being quirky and accessible in a largely humorless profession, Leach has managed to develop a cult of personality that enjoys his random musings on dinosaurs and pirates. — Dan Wolken, USA TODAY, "Mike Leach's tweet of an anti-Obama hoax showed why many schools won't hire him," 18 June 2018 Jules Verne imagined dinosaurs and enormous humans living underground in Journey to the Center of the Earth, while H. Rider Haggard created a lost civilization in King Solomon’s Mines. — Lorraine Boissoneault, Smithsonian, "What if Napoleon Hadn’t Lost Europe and Other Questions of Alternate History," 14 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dinosaur.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.