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gastropod

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Etymology and origin of the English word gastropod

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1826 More words from the 19th century
Borrowed from
Latin Gasteropoda
Ultimate origin
Ancient Greek γαστήρ,πούς

Pronunciation

  • US: /ˈɡæstɹəˌpɑd/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from New Latin Gasteropoda, also Gastropoda, the name of a class of mollusks,[2][3][4][5] which Barnhart says was offered by the French naturalist Cuvier.[3] The Shorter Oxford takes the English word through French gastéropode.[6] The name is formed from Ancient Greek γαστήρ (gastḗr, “stomach”) and πούς (poús, “foot”),[2][3] the latter from Proto-Indo-European *ped- (“foot”),[2] and it refers to the ventral position of the animal's foot.[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A mollusk of this class: 1826, in the form gasteropod.[2][3][7] Dictionary.com gives the range 1820–30,[8] and the Shorter Oxford the early 19th century.[6]

Semantic evolution

The spelling without -e- is found by 1854.[2][3] The adjective is dated to 1826 by Merriam-Webster Unabridged and to 1836–39 by Barnhart.[4][3]

Timeline

  • 1826 – noun, gasteropod, a mollusk of this class.[2][3][7]
  • 1854 – the spelling gastropod.[2][3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A mollusk of the class Gastropoda, usually with a single coiled shell or none, a muscular foot on the underside and a distinct head with tentacles; snails, slugs, whelks and limpets belong to it.[5][9][4][6]

Adjective

  1. Of or belonging to the class Gastropoda: gastropod anatomy.[9][4]

Word family

  • gastropodan
  • gastropodous

Usage notes

Gasteropod is still recorded as a variant spelling.[9][6]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  6. ^ a b c d Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  9. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Gastropod.” Etymologically, 6 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/en/gastropod. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·