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Definition of "lobe-finned fish" []

  • A member of the subclass Crossopterygii, a group of bony fishes with paired rounded fins, suggesting limbs, that are extinct except for the coelacanths. The lobe-finned fishes are regarded by some as ancestors of amphibians and other terrestrial vertebrates. Also called crossopterygian, lobefin. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "lobe-finned fish" in a sentence
  • "* His evocation of what drove some lobe-finned fish to develop lungs and legs, which was derived from Romer himself, made memorable sense to my student ears, and it still makes sense to me even though it is less fashionable among modern palaeontologists than it was in Romer’s time."