| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| mecopteran |
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| SYLLABICATION: | me·cop·ter·an |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  m -k p t r-n |
| NOUN: | Any of various carnivorous insects of the order Mecoptera, which includes the scorpion flies, characterized by long membranous wings and an elongated beaklike head having chewing mouthparts at the tip. | | ETYMOLOGY: | From New Latin M coptera, order name : Greek mkos, length; see m k- in Appendix I + Greek ptera, pl. of pteron, wing; see pet- in Appendix I. | | OTHER FORMS: | me·copter·ous —ADJECTIVE
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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