prettygoodword: text: words are sexy (words are sexy)
prettygoodword ([personal profile] prettygoodword) wrote2014-12-23 07:49 am

anatine

anatine (AN-uh-tain, AN-uh-tin) - adj., of, relating to, or resembling a duck, ducklike; relating to the family Anatidae comprising the swans, geese, and ducks.


In honor of my toddler, who cannot yet say "duck," but whenever she sees one, she raises her hand over her head an mimes quacking. Adopted around 1860 in scientific contexts from Latin anatīnus, from anas, duck + adjectival ending.

---L.