invertebrate

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   an animal without a backbone, such as an insect, mollusk, or worm

   The fruit fly is an invertebrate widely used in genetic research.

2. 2
   adj

   lacking a backbone or relating to animals that lack one

   The researchers compared radiation effects in vertebrate and invertebrate species.

Borrowed from French invertebre and formed from in- ("not") + vertebrate. Vertebrate derives from Latin vertebra ("joint of the spine"), so invertebrate literally describes an animal without vertebrae.

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