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octopus
octopuscephalopod mollusk having no shell, eight muscular arms or tentacles, a pouch-shaped body, and two large, highly developed eyes. The prey (crabs, lobsters, and other shellfish) is seized by the sucker-bearing arms and pulled into the web of tissue at the base of the arms, paralyzed and partially digested by a poisonous salivary secretion, and chewed by the horny, beaklike jaws and the radula, or tooth ribbon. Octopuses move by pulling themselves along with their arms or by forcibly expelling water through the funnel or siphon in the manner of their near relative, the squid. Sometimes they construct barricades of large stones; most hide in rocky crevices at the approach of danger or cloud the water by ejecting dark "ink" from the ink sac. They also change color (from pinkish to brown) according to mood and environment, sometimes exhibiting rapid waves of color changes that sweep over the body. The 3-ft (91-cm) American devilfish is found off Florida and in the West Indies; a smaller species that reaches only 2 in. (5 cm) is found N of Cape Cod. The common octopus of the Mediterranean and the Atlantic occasionally reaches 10 ft (3 m) in length; the giant octopus of the Pacific may have a diameter of over 30 ft (9 m). Octopuses reproduce sexually. One of the arms of the male is modified into a sexual organ that deposits spermatophores in the mantle cavity of the female. The eggs are encased in capsules and attached to a rock, where the female guards them. The young hatch directly, without a larval stage. Octopus is eaten in many parts of the world. Octopuses are classified in the phylum Mollusca , class Cephalopoda, order Octopoda, family Octopodidae, genus Octopus. |
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"octopus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "octopus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-octopus.html "octopus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-octopus.html |
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octopus
oc·to·pus / ˈäktəpəs/ • n. (pl. octopuses ) 1. a cephalopod (Octopus and other genera, order Octopoda) with eight sucker-bearing arms, a soft saclike body, strong beaklike jaws, and no internal shell. 2. fig. an organization or system perceived to have far-reaching and typically harmful effects. DERIVATIVES: oc·to·poid adj. / -ˌpoid/ |
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"octopus." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "octopus." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-octopus.html "octopus." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-octopus.html |
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octopus
octopus Predatory, cephalopod mollusc with no external shell. Its sac-like body has eight powerful suckered tentacles. They feed mostly on crabs and other shellfish, paralysing their prey with poison. Many of the 150 species are small, but the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) grows to 9m (30ft). Family Octopodidae.
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"octopus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "octopus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-octopus.html "octopus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-octopus.html |
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octopus
octopus Marine cephalopod (Octopus spp.) with beak‐like mouth surrounded by eight tentacles bearing suckers.
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DAVID A. BENDER. "octopus." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DAVID A. BENDER. "octopus." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-octopus.html DAVID A. BENDER. "octopus." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-octopus.html |
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octopus
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T. F. HOAD. "octopus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "octopus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-octopus.html T. F. HOAD. "octopus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-octopus.html |
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octopus
octopus •Chiapas, tapas
•campus, grampus, hippocampus, pampas
•metacarpus, streptocarpus
•trespass • Priapus • Lepus
•Aristippus, Lysippus
•Olympus • Oedipus • platypus
•pompous
•corpus, porpoise
•Canopus, opus
•lupus, upas
•compass, encompass, rumpus
•octopus
•multipurpose, purpose
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Cite this article
"octopus." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "octopus." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-octopus.html "octopus." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-octopus.html |
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