"living fossil" meaning in All languages combined

See living fossil on Wiktionary

Noun [English]

IPA: /ˈlɪvɪŋ ˈfɒsl̩/ [Received-Pronunciation], /ˈlɪvɪŋ ˈfɑsl̩/ [General-American] Audio: en-au-living fossil.ogg [Australia] Forms: living fossils [plural]
Etymology: The term was coined by the English biologist, geologist, and naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) in his work On the Origin of Species (1859): see the quotation below. Etymology templates: {{vern|West Indian Ocean coelacanth}} West Indian Ocean coelacanth, {{taxlink|Latimeria chalumnae|species}} Latimeria chalumnae Head templates: {{en-noun}} living fossil (plural living fossils)
  1. (evolutionary theory) Any species discovered first as a fossil and believed extinct, but which is later found living; an organism that has remained unchanged over geological periods. Categories (topical): Evolutionary theory Translations (species believed extinct but later found living): lewende fossiel (Afrikaans), حفرية حية (Arabic), fosil bizidun (Basque), жывы выкапень (žyvy vykapjenʹ) (Belarusian), живи вкаменелости (živi vkamenelosti) (Bulgarian), fòssil vivent (Catalan), 活化石 (wut⁶ faa³ sek⁶) (Chinese Cantonese), 活化石 (huóhuàshí) (Chinese Mandarin), živoucí fosílie [feminine] (Czech), levend fossiel [neuter] (Dutch), vivanta fosilio (Esperanto), elav fossiil (Estonian), elävä fossiili (Finnish), fossile vivant [masculine] (French), Dauerform [feminine] (German), lebendes Fossil [neuter] (German), מאובן חי (Hebrew), जीवित जीवाश्म (jīvit jīvāśma) (Hindi), élő kövület (Hungarian), fosil hidup (Indonesian), iontaise bheo [feminine] (Irish), fossile vivente [masculine] (Italian), 生きている化石 (ikiteiru kaseki) (Japanese), 生きた化石 (ikita kaseki) (Japanese), тіpі қазындылар (tıpı qazyndylar) (Kazakh), 살아 있는 화석 (sara inneun hwaseok) (Korean), laevend fossiel (Limburgish), gyvoji fosilija (Lithuanian), സജീവഫോസിൽ (sajīvaphōsil) (Malayalam), levende fossil [masculine, neuter] (Norwegian Bokmål), fossil vivent [feminine] (Occitan), فسیل زنده (Persian), żywa skamieniałość [feminine] (Polish), żywa skamielina [feminine] (Polish), fóssil vivo [masculine] (Portuguese), fosilă vie [feminine] (Romanian), живые ископаемые (živyje iskopajemyje) [neuter] (Russian), živé fosílie [feminine] (Slovak), žijúce skameneniny (Slovak), živi fosil (Slovene), fósil viviente [masculine] (Spanish), levande fossil [neuter] (Swedish), வாழும் தொல்லுயிர் எச்சம் (vāḻum tolluyir eccam) (Tamil), సజీవ శిలాజాలు (sajīva śilājālu) (Telugu), ซากดึกดำบรรพ์มีชีวิต (Thai), yaşayan fosil (Turkish), живі викопні (žyvi vykopni) (Ukrainian), hóa thạch sống (Vietnamese), جیوندے پتھری جاندار (Western Panjabi)
    Sense id: en-living_fossil-en-noun-PW-lu~YK Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 50 50 Disambiguation of 'species believed extinct but later found living': 63 37
  2. (evolutionary theory) Any living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives in most anatomical details. Categories (topical): Evolutionary theory Translations (living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives): 活化石 (wut⁶ faa³ sek⁶) (Chinese Cantonese), 活化石 (huóhuàshí) (Chinese Mandarin), levend fossiel [neuter] (Dutch), elävä fossiili (Finnish)
    Sense id: en-living_fossil-en-noun--~Ssc8aC Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 50 50 Disambiguation of 'living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives': 28 72

Inflected forms

Download JSON data for living fossil meaning in All languages combined (15.3kB)

{
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "West Indian Ocean coelacanth"
      },
      "expansion": "West Indian Ocean coelacanth",
      "name": "vern"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "Latimeria chalumnae",
        "2": "species"
      },
      "expansion": "Latimeria chalumnae",
      "name": "taxlink"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "The term was coined by the English biologist, geologist, and naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) in his work On the Origin of Species (1859): see the quotation below.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "living fossils",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "living fossil (plural living fossils)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "hyphenation": [
    "liv‧ing"
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Evolutionary theory",
          "orig": "en:Evolutionary theory",
          "parents": [
            "Biology",
            "Sciences",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "50 50",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "The coelacanth and the dawn redwood are living fossils.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1929 April 18, Edward W[ilber] Berry, “A Revision of the Flora of the Latah Formation”, in W[alter] C[urran] Mendenhall, editor, Shorter Contributions to General Geology 1928 (U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper; 154), Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 229, column 1",
          "text": "The Gingko, whose single existing species was aptly termed a living fossil by [Charles] Darwin and which survived to modern times only in eastern Asia and is now a prized ornamental tree in all temperate countries, has an ancestral history that goes back to remote geologic time.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1986 October 23, Martin Wells, “Legend of the Living Fossil”, in Michael Kenward, editor, New Scientist, volume 112, number 1531, London: New Science Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 36, column 1",
          "text": "It features in textbooks as well, a prime example of a \"living fossil\", a reminder of past glories now hanging on in a last-ditch action against final extinction. But is nautilus really an anachronism?",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2001 August 10, Paul Rudish, Genndy Tartakovsky, “Samurai Jack: The Premiere Movie – Part II: The Samurai Called Jack”, in Samurai Jack, season 1, episode 2",
          "text": "Angus: Impossible! If what you say is true, he'd have to be thousands of years old. / Rothie: Astounding! The age-o-meter dates your particles all the way back to 25 B.A., twenty-five years before Aku enslaved the Earth. You, my friend, are a living fossil. / Jack: So the question is not where I am but when I am. […] The spell Aku cast must have ripped me from my own time and flung me into the distant future.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Any species discovered first as a fossil and believed extinct, but which is later found living; an organism that has remained unchanged over geological periods."
      ],
      "id": "en-living_fossil-en-noun-PW-lu~YK",
      "links": [
        [
          "evolutionary theory",
          "evolutionary theory"
        ],
        [
          "species",
          "species"
        ],
        [
          "discover",
          "discover"
        ],
        [
          "fossil",
          "fossil"
        ],
        [
          "extinct",
          "extinct"
        ],
        [
          "living",
          "live#Verb"
        ],
        [
          "organism",
          "organism"
        ],
        [
          "remain",
          "remain"
        ],
        [
          "unchanged",
          "unchanged"
        ],
        [
          "geological",
          "geological"
        ],
        [
          "period",
          "period"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "evolutionary theory",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(evolutionary theory) Any species discovered first as a fossil and believed extinct, but which is later found living; an organism that has remained unchanged over geological periods."
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "af",
          "lang": "Afrikaans",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "lewende fossiel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ar",
          "lang": "Arabic",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "حفرية حية"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "eu",
          "lang": "Basque",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "fosil bizidun"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "be",
          "lang": "Belarusian",
          "roman": "žyvy vykapjenʹ",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "жывы выкапень"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "bg",
          "lang": "Bulgarian",
          "roman": "živi vkamenelosti",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "живи вкаменелости"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ca",
          "lang": "Catalan",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "fòssil vivent"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "yue",
          "lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
          "roman": "wut⁶ faa³ sek⁶",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "活化石"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "huóhuàshí",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "活化石"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "cs",
          "lang": "Czech",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "živoucí fosílie"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "levend fossiel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "eo",
          "lang": "Esperanto",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "vivanta fosilio"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "et",
          "lang": "Estonian",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "elav fossiil"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "elävä fossiili"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "fossile vivant"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "Dauerform"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "lebendes Fossil"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "he",
          "lang": "Hebrew",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "מאובן חי"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "hi",
          "lang": "Hindi",
          "roman": "jīvit jīvāśma",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "जीवित जीवाश्म"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "élő kövület"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "id",
          "lang": "Indonesian",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "fosil hidup"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ga",
          "lang": "Irish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "iontaise bheo"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "fossile vivente"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "roman": "ikiteiru kaseki",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "生きている化石"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "roman": "ikita kaseki",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "生きた化石"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "kk",
          "lang": "Kazakh",
          "roman": "tıpı qazyndylar",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "тіpі қазындылар"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ko",
          "lang": "Korean",
          "roman": "sara inneun hwaseok",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "살아 있는 화석"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "li",
          "lang": "Limburgish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "laevend fossiel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "lt",
          "lang": "Lithuanian",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "gyvoji fosilija"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ml",
          "lang": "Malayalam",
          "roman": "sajīvaphōsil",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "സജീവഫോസിൽ"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "nb",
          "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "masculine",
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "levende fossil"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "oc",
          "lang": "Occitan",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "fossil vivent"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "fa",
          "lang": "Persian",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "فسیل زنده"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "żywa skamieniałość"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "żywa skamielina"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "fóssil vivo"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ro",
          "lang": "Romanian",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "fosilă vie"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "živyje iskopajemyje",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "живые ископаемые"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "sk",
          "lang": "Slovak",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "živé fosílie"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "sk",
          "lang": "Slovak",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "žijúce skameneniny"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "sl",
          "lang": "Slovene",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "živi fosil"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "fósil viviente"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "levande fossil"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "ta",
          "lang": "Tamil",
          "roman": "vāḻum tolluyir eccam",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "வாழும் தொல்லுயிர் எச்சம்"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "te",
          "lang": "Telugu",
          "roman": "sajīva śilājālu",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "సజీవ శిలాజాలు"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "th",
          "lang": "Thai",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "ซากดึกดำบรรพ์มีชีวิต"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "tr",
          "lang": "Turkish",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "yaşayan fosil"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "uk",
          "lang": "Ukrainian",
          "roman": "žyvi vykopni",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "живі викопні"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "vi",
          "lang": "Vietnamese",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "hóa thạch sống"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "63 37",
          "code": "pnb",
          "lang": "Western Panjabi",
          "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
          "word": "جیوندے پتھری جاندار"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Evolutionary theory",
          "orig": "en:Evolutionary theory",
          "parents": [
            "Biology",
            "Sciences",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "50 50",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Crocodiles are living fossils that haven’t changed their appearance much in millions of years.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1967 April, J. I. Daeley, “Pluralism in the Diocese of Canterbury during the Administration of Matthew Parker, 1559–1575”, in C. W. Dugmore, editor, The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, volume XVIII, number 1, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 34",
          "text": "Living in apparently splendid ease, travelling with a retinue of seventy, demanding the many courtesies due to a peer of the realm, exacting from his many manors rents and incidentals such as private wardships, in exactly the same way as did the lay lords, and making the most of his public appearances in the role either of judge or of administrator, [Matthew] Parker seemed to some an anachronism. He seemed to be a living fossil from 'the days of popery' (as contemporaries, lacking an historical sense and groping for an expression adequate to convey what they meant, called the medieval era).",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1984, Frederick R[obert] Schram, Robert R. Hessler, “Anaspidid Syncarida”, in Niles Eldredge, Steven M. Stanley, editors, Living Fossils (Casebooks in Earth Sciences), New York, N.Y.: Springer Verlag; 1st paperback edition, New York, N.Y.: Springer Verlag, 1984, →DOI, →ISSN",
          "text": "There are four living families of Anaspidacea, but only the Anaspididae are of interest in the context of \"living fossils\" since they bear the closest resemblance to the extinct Palaeocaridacea.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 34",
          "text": "These relics of Europe’s dawning are deserving of special recognition, for they are in effect Europe’s living fossils, as precious as the platypus and lungfish.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Any living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives in most anatomical details."
      ],
      "id": "en-living_fossil-en-noun--~Ssc8aC",
      "links": [
        [
          "evolutionary theory",
          "evolutionary theory"
        ],
        [
          "living",
          "living#Adjective"
        ],
        [
          "closely",
          "closely"
        ],
        [
          "resemble",
          "resemble"
        ],
        [
          "relatives",
          "relative#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "anatomical",
          "anatomical"
        ],
        [
          "details",
          "detail#Noun"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "evolutionary theory",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(evolutionary theory) Any living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives in most anatomical details."
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "28 72",
          "code": "yue",
          "lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
          "roman": "wut⁶ faa³ sek⁶",
          "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
          "word": "活化石"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "28 72",
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "huóhuàshí",
          "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
          "word": "活化石"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "28 72",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "levend fossiel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "28 72",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
          "word": "elävä fossiili"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈlɪvɪŋ ˈfɒsl̩/",
      "tags": [
        "Received-Pronunciation"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈlɪvɪŋ ˈfɑsl̩/",
      "tags": [
        "General-American"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "en-au-living fossil.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/97/En-au-living_fossil.ogg/En-au-living_fossil.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/En-au-living_fossil.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Charles Darwin",
    "On the Origin of Species",
    "W. W. Norton & Company"
  ],
  "word": "living fossil"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "English terms with audio links"
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "West Indian Ocean coelacanth"
      },
      "expansion": "West Indian Ocean coelacanth",
      "name": "vern"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "Latimeria chalumnae",
        "2": "species"
      },
      "expansion": "Latimeria chalumnae",
      "name": "taxlink"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "The term was coined by the English biologist, geologist, and naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) in his work On the Origin of Species (1859): see the quotation below.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "living fossils",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "living fossil (plural living fossils)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "hyphenation": [
    "liv‧ing"
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "en:Evolutionary theory"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "The coelacanth and the dawn redwood are living fossils.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1929 April 18, Edward W[ilber] Berry, “A Revision of the Flora of the Latah Formation”, in W[alter] C[urran] Mendenhall, editor, Shorter Contributions to General Geology 1928 (U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper; 154), Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 229, column 1",
          "text": "The Gingko, whose single existing species was aptly termed a living fossil by [Charles] Darwin and which survived to modern times only in eastern Asia and is now a prized ornamental tree in all temperate countries, has an ancestral history that goes back to remote geologic time.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1986 October 23, Martin Wells, “Legend of the Living Fossil”, in Michael Kenward, editor, New Scientist, volume 112, number 1531, London: New Science Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 36, column 1",
          "text": "It features in textbooks as well, a prime example of a \"living fossil\", a reminder of past glories now hanging on in a last-ditch action against final extinction. But is nautilus really an anachronism?",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2001 August 10, Paul Rudish, Genndy Tartakovsky, “Samurai Jack: The Premiere Movie – Part II: The Samurai Called Jack”, in Samurai Jack, season 1, episode 2",
          "text": "Angus: Impossible! If what you say is true, he'd have to be thousands of years old. / Rothie: Astounding! The age-o-meter dates your particles all the way back to 25 B.A., twenty-five years before Aku enslaved the Earth. You, my friend, are a living fossil. / Jack: So the question is not where I am but when I am. […] The spell Aku cast must have ripped me from my own time and flung me into the distant future.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Any species discovered first as a fossil and believed extinct, but which is later found living; an organism that has remained unchanged over geological periods."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "evolutionary theory",
          "evolutionary theory"
        ],
        [
          "species",
          "species"
        ],
        [
          "discover",
          "discover"
        ],
        [
          "fossil",
          "fossil"
        ],
        [
          "extinct",
          "extinct"
        ],
        [
          "living",
          "live#Verb"
        ],
        [
          "organism",
          "organism"
        ],
        [
          "remain",
          "remain"
        ],
        [
          "unchanged",
          "unchanged"
        ],
        [
          "geological",
          "geological"
        ],
        [
          "period",
          "period"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "evolutionary theory",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(evolutionary theory) Any species discovered first as a fossil and believed extinct, but which is later found living; an organism that has remained unchanged over geological periods."
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "en:Evolutionary theory"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Crocodiles are living fossils that haven’t changed their appearance much in millions of years.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1967 April, J. I. Daeley, “Pluralism in the Diocese of Canterbury during the Administration of Matthew Parker, 1559–1575”, in C. W. Dugmore, editor, The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, volume XVIII, number 1, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 34",
          "text": "Living in apparently splendid ease, travelling with a retinue of seventy, demanding the many courtesies due to a peer of the realm, exacting from his many manors rents and incidentals such as private wardships, in exactly the same way as did the lay lords, and making the most of his public appearances in the role either of judge or of administrator, [Matthew] Parker seemed to some an anachronism. He seemed to be a living fossil from 'the days of popery' (as contemporaries, lacking an historical sense and groping for an expression adequate to convey what they meant, called the medieval era).",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1984, Frederick R[obert] Schram, Robert R. Hessler, “Anaspidid Syncarida”, in Niles Eldredge, Steven M. Stanley, editors, Living Fossils (Casebooks in Earth Sciences), New York, N.Y.: Springer Verlag; 1st paperback edition, New York, N.Y.: Springer Verlag, 1984, →DOI, →ISSN",
          "text": "There are four living families of Anaspidacea, but only the Anaspididae are of interest in the context of \"living fossils\" since they bear the closest resemblance to the extinct Palaeocaridacea.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 34",
          "text": "These relics of Europe’s dawning are deserving of special recognition, for they are in effect Europe’s living fossils, as precious as the platypus and lungfish.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Any living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives in most anatomical details."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "evolutionary theory",
          "evolutionary theory"
        ],
        [
          "living",
          "living#Adjective"
        ],
        [
          "closely",
          "closely"
        ],
        [
          "resemble",
          "resemble"
        ],
        [
          "relatives",
          "relative#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "anatomical",
          "anatomical"
        ],
        [
          "details",
          "detail#Noun"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "evolutionary theory",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(evolutionary theory) Any living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives in most anatomical details."
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈlɪvɪŋ ˈfɒsl̩/",
      "tags": [
        "Received-Pronunciation"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈlɪvɪŋ ˈfɑsl̩/",
      "tags": [
        "General-American"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "en-au-living fossil.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/97/En-au-living_fossil.ogg/En-au-living_fossil.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/En-au-living_fossil.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "af",
      "lang": "Afrikaans",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "lewende fossiel"
    },
    {
      "code": "ar",
      "lang": "Arabic",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "حفرية حية"
    },
    {
      "code": "eu",
      "lang": "Basque",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "fosil bizidun"
    },
    {
      "code": "be",
      "lang": "Belarusian",
      "roman": "žyvy vykapjenʹ",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "жывы выкапень"
    },
    {
      "code": "bg",
      "lang": "Bulgarian",
      "roman": "živi vkamenelosti",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "живи вкаменелости"
    },
    {
      "code": "ca",
      "lang": "Catalan",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "fòssil vivent"
    },
    {
      "code": "yue",
      "lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
      "roman": "wut⁶ faa³ sek⁶",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "活化石"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "huóhuàshí",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "活化石"
    },
    {
      "code": "cs",
      "lang": "Czech",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "živoucí fosílie"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "levend fossiel"
    },
    {
      "code": "eo",
      "lang": "Esperanto",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "vivanta fosilio"
    },
    {
      "code": "et",
      "lang": "Estonian",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "elav fossiil"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "elävä fossiili"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "fossile vivant"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "Dauerform"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "lebendes Fossil"
    },
    {
      "code": "he",
      "lang": "Hebrew",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "מאובן חי"
    },
    {
      "code": "hi",
      "lang": "Hindi",
      "roman": "jīvit jīvāśma",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "जीवित जीवाश्म"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "élő kövület"
    },
    {
      "code": "id",
      "lang": "Indonesian",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "fosil hidup"
    },
    {
      "code": "ga",
      "lang": "Irish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "iontaise bheo"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "fossile vivente"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "ikiteiru kaseki",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "生きている化石"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "ikita kaseki",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "生きた化石"
    },
    {
      "code": "kk",
      "lang": "Kazakh",
      "roman": "tıpı qazyndylar",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "тіpі қазындылар"
    },
    {
      "code": "ko",
      "lang": "Korean",
      "roman": "sara inneun hwaseok",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "살아 있는 화석"
    },
    {
      "code": "li",
      "lang": "Limburgish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "laevend fossiel"
    },
    {
      "code": "lt",
      "lang": "Lithuanian",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "gyvoji fosilija"
    },
    {
      "code": "ml",
      "lang": "Malayalam",
      "roman": "sajīvaphōsil",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "സജീവഫോസിൽ"
    },
    {
      "code": "nb",
      "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "masculine",
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "levende fossil"
    },
    {
      "code": "oc",
      "lang": "Occitan",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "fossil vivent"
    },
    {
      "code": "fa",
      "lang": "Persian",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "فسیل زنده"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "żywa skamieniałość"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "żywa skamielina"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "fóssil vivo"
    },
    {
      "code": "ro",
      "lang": "Romanian",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "fosilă vie"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "živyje iskopajemyje",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "живые ископаемые"
    },
    {
      "code": "sk",
      "lang": "Slovak",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "živé fosílie"
    },
    {
      "code": "sk",
      "lang": "Slovak",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "žijúce skameneniny"
    },
    {
      "code": "sl",
      "lang": "Slovene",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "živi fosil"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "fósil viviente"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "levande fossil"
    },
    {
      "code": "ta",
      "lang": "Tamil",
      "roman": "vāḻum tolluyir eccam",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "வாழும் தொல்லுயிர் எச்சம்"
    },
    {
      "code": "te",
      "lang": "Telugu",
      "roman": "sajīva śilājālu",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "సజీవ శిలాజాలు"
    },
    {
      "code": "th",
      "lang": "Thai",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "ซากดึกดำบรรพ์มีชีวิต"
    },
    {
      "code": "tr",
      "lang": "Turkish",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "yaşayan fosil"
    },
    {
      "code": "uk",
      "lang": "Ukrainian",
      "roman": "žyvi vykopni",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "живі викопні"
    },
    {
      "code": "vi",
      "lang": "Vietnamese",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "hóa thạch sống"
    },
    {
      "code": "pnb",
      "lang": "Western Panjabi",
      "sense": "species believed extinct but later found living",
      "word": "جیوندے پتھری جاندار"
    },
    {
      "code": "yue",
      "lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
      "roman": "wut⁶ faa³ sek⁶",
      "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
      "word": "活化石"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "huóhuàshí",
      "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
      "word": "活化石"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "levend fossiel"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "living species which very closely resembles fossil relatives",
      "word": "elävä fossiili"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Charles Darwin",
    "On the Origin of Species",
    "W. W. Norton & Company"
  ],
  "word": "living fossil"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable All languages combined dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-05 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-05-02 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.