as in predatory
living by killing and eating other animals
the place of raptorial birds in the park's ecosystem
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Recent Examples of raptorial
Villegas pushed for the original measure after dangerous speeding and red-light running by raptorial tow drivers ended in a nearly catastrophic crash in his ward that saw a bus that had been hit by a tow truck plow through a storefront.
—
Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2025
Detailed testimonies of refugees along the Balkan route therefore challenge the conventional wisdom that officials tend to protect them from raptorial smugglers.
—Max Abrahms, Foreign Affairs, 22 Mar. 2017
Damsel bugs are slender and tan-colored and have slightly raptorial front legs.
—Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 July 2023
Massively Powerful Predators Mantis shrimps’ raptorial appendages contain massive muscles that can extend them to their full length in hundredths of a second, producing strike forces that in some species can smash through the glass wall of an aquarium or instantly dismember a crab.
—Thomas Cronin, University Of Maryland, Discover Magazine, 3 Aug. 2018
Like its adult counterparts, the little arthropod had a spiny raptorial appendage used for grasping prey and the radiodontan’s characteristic circular mouth filled with sharp teeth.
—Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 11 June 2018
Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2025
Detailed testimonies of refugees along the Balkan route therefore challenge the conventional wisdom that officials tend to protect them from raptorial smugglers.
—Max Abrahms, Foreign Affairs, 22 Mar. 2017
Damsel bugs are slender and tan-colored and have slightly raptorial front legs.
—Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 July 2023
Massively Powerful Predators Mantis shrimps’ raptorial appendages contain massive muscles that can extend them to their full length in hundredths of a second, producing strike forces that in some species can smash through the glass wall of an aquarium or instantly dismember a crab.
—Thomas Cronin, University Of Maryland, Discover Magazine, 3 Aug. 2018
Like its adult counterparts, the little arthropod had a spiny raptorial appendage used for grasping prey and the radiodontan’s characteristic circular mouth filled with sharp teeth.
—Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 11 June 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for raptorial
predatory
Adjective
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While hammerhead worms are not a direct threat to humans or household pets, their predatory nature can have a lasting effect on a local ecosystem.—
Greta Cross,
USA Today,
14 June 2025
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But last year, the New York State Court of Appeals overturned that conviction, saying the trial judge should have never allowed other women whose allegations were not included in the charges to testify against him and establish a pattern of predatory behavior.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
12 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Raptorial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/raptorial. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
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