gill slit
noun
1
: any of the openings or clefts between the gill arches in vertebrates that breathe by gills through which water taken in at the mouth passes to the exterior and so bathes the gills
2
: any of the rudimentary grooves in the neck region of the embryos of air-breathing vertebrates that correspond to the gill slits
3
: the external opening to the cavity containing the gills when a protective covering of the gills is present
Examples of gill slit in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Another main difference is that white sharks have large gill slits, while basking sharks have extra large gill slits.
—
Rick Sobey, Hartford Courant, 22 May 2025
Its gill slits are located within a large circular blotch.
—Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 16 Sep. 2024
The German Darwinist Ernst Haeckel had speculated that while in utero human embryos pass through every stage of evolutionary history, developing first what look like gill slits and tails, which disappear in time.
—Maya Jasanoff, The New Yorker, 6 May 2024
Also like other pygmy seahorses, the African species has only one gill slit on its upper back, instead of two below each side of the head, like larger seahorses—another mystery.
—National Geographic, 20 May 2020
But to breathe, most pull oxygen-containing water into their mouths and pump it through their gill chambers before expelling it out of their gill slits.
—Alex Fox, Science | AAAS, 14 June 2019
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.
Rick Sobey, Hartford Courant, 22 May 2025
Its gill slits are located within a large circular blotch.
—Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 16 Sep. 2024
The German Darwinist Ernst Haeckel had speculated that while in utero human embryos pass through every stage of evolutionary history, developing first what look like gill slits and tails, which disappear in time.
—Maya Jasanoff, The New Yorker, 6 May 2024
Also like other pygmy seahorses, the African species has only one gill slit on its upper back, instead of two below each side of the head, like larger seahorses—another mystery.
—National Geographic, 20 May 2020
But to breathe, most pull oxygen-containing water into their mouths and pump it through their gill chambers before expelling it out of their gill slits.
—Alex Fox, Science | AAAS, 14 June 2019
Cite this Entry
“Gill slit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gill%20slit. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share