Definition

1. Noun:
   • A type of large, herbivorous dinosaur: A "duck-billed dinosaur" is any of a group of large, bipedal ornithischian dinosaurs characterized by a broad, flat, horny bill resembling that of a duck and often having webbed feet. They are believed by scientists to have been partly aquatic.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The hadrosaur is the most well-known type of duck-billed dinosaur.
  • Fossils of the duck-billed dinosaur have been found near ancient riverbeds.
  • Paleontologists study the unique dental batteries of the duck-billed dinosaur.

Advanced Usage

• Scientific context: The term is often used synonymously with the family name Hadrosauridae in paleontological literature.
  • The discovery provided new insights into the social behavior of duck-billed dinosaurs.

Variants and Related Words

• Hadrosaur (n): The formal scientific name for a duck-billed dinosaur.
  • The hadrosaur is famous for its distinctive cranial crest in some species.
• Ornithopod (n): A broader suborder of bipedal herbivorous dinosaurs that includes hadrosaurs.
  • The duck-billed dinosaur is a specialized member of the ornithopod group.

Synonyms

• Hadrosaur: The direct scientific synonym.
• Trachodont (n, historical): An older, now less common term for some duck-billed dinosaurs.

Related Phrases

• Duck-billed platypus (n): A modern egg-laying mammal with a similar bill, used for comparative description only.
  • Note: This is a different animal, not a dinosaur. The name is a point of comparison due to the bill shape.

Noun

1. any of numerous large bipedal ornithischian dinosaurs having a horny duck-like bill and webbed feet; may have been partly aquatic