Word Study
madrepore
WORDNET DICTIONARY
Noun madrepore has 1 sense
- madrepore(n = noun.animal) madriporian coral, stony coral - corals having calcareous skeletons aggregations of which form reefs and islands; Array is a kind of coral
is a member of madreporaria, order madreporaria
has particulars: brain coral, stag's-horn coral, staghorn coral, mushroom coral
CIDE DICTIONARY
madrepore, n. [F. madrepore, perh. fr. madré spotted, fr. OF. madre, mazre, a kind of knotty wood with brown spots, fr. OHG. masar a knot, grain, or vein in wood, a speck, G. maser + pore (see Pore); or perh. F. madrépore is rather from It. madrepora, and this perh. fr. It. madre mother (see Mother) + Gr. a soft stone.].
Any coral of the genus Madrepora , a group of corals having calcareous skeletons aggregations of which form reefs and islands; formerly, often applied to any stony coral. [1913 Webster]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
madrepore, n.
1 any perforated coral of the genus Madrepora.
2 the animal producing this.
1 any perforated coral of the genus Madrepora.
2 the animal producing this.
Derivative
madreporic adj.
Etymology
F madr{eacute}pore or mod.L madrepora f. It. madrepora f. madre mother + poro PORE(1)
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