snail
- Common name for members of the class Gastropoda (phylum Mollusca). The freshwater pulmonate (nonoperculated, air-breathing) snails (subclass Pulmonata, order Basommatophora) include the majority of intermediate hosts of trematodes parasitic in humans and domestic birds and mammals, chiefly in the families Lymnaeidae and Planorbidae. The subclass Prosobranchiata, the operculate snails, includes the order Neogastropoda, which includes the venomous stinging cone snails (genus Conus), and the order Mesogastropoda, of which the family Hydrobiidae includes most of the medically important host snails. [M.E. snaile]
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snail 'snā(ə)l n any of various gastropod mollusks and esp. those having an external enclosing spiral shell including some which are important in medicine as intermediate hosts of trematodes* * *
(snāl) any of numerous gastropods that have external spiral shells; they are divided between the subclasses Euthyneura and Streptoneura. Many snails in tropical countries are intermediate hosts of parasitic trematodes; the miracidium of the parasite develops into a cercaria in the body of the snail. Cf. slug.
Medical dictionary. 2011.
Look at other dictionaries:
Snail — (sn[=a]l), n. [OE. snaile, AS. sn[ae]gel, snegel, sn[ae]gl; akin to G. schnecke, OHG. snecko, Dan. snegl, Icel. snigill.] 1. (Zo[ o]l.) (a) Any one of numerous species of terrestrial air breathing gastropods belonging to the genus Helix and many… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
snail — snail; snail·er; snail·ery; snail·ish; snail·ish·ly; … English syllables
snail — [sneıl] n [: Old English; Origin: snAgl] 1.) a small soft creature that moves very slowly and has a hard shell on its back 2.) at a snail s pace extremely slowly ▪ Traffic was moving at a snail s pace … Dictionary of contemporary English
snail — (n.) O.E. snægl, from P.Gmc. *snagilas (Cf. O.S. snegil, O.N. snigill, M.H.G. snegel, dialectal Ger. Schnegel, O.H.G. snecko, Ger. Schnecke snail ), from root *snag , *sneg to crawl (see SNAKE (Cf. snake) (n.)) … Etymology dictionary
snail — [ sneıl ] noun count a small animal that has a soft body, no legs, and a hard shell on its back. Snails move very slowly. at a snail s pace very slowly … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
snail — ► NOUN ▪ a slow moving mollusc with a spiral shell into which the whole body can be withdrawn. ORIGIN Old English … English terms dictionary
snail — [snāl] n. [ME snaile < OE snægl, akin to Ger dial. schnägel, ON snigill < IE base * sneg , to creep > SNAKE, SNEAK] 1. any of a large number of slow moving gastropods living on land or in water and having a spiral protective shell: some… … English World dictionary
Snail — For other uses, see Snail (disambiguation). For sea snails, see Sea snail. For slugs, see Slug. Helix pomatia, a species of land snail … Wikipedia
snail — [[t]sne͟ɪl[/t]] snails 1) N COUNT A snail is a small animal with a long, soft body, no legs, and a spiral shaped shell. Snails move very slowly. 2) PHRASE: PHR after v (emphasis) If you say that someone does something at a snail s pace, you are… … English dictionary
Snail — 1) Heb. homit, among the unclean creeping things (Lev. 11:30). This was probably the sand lizard, of which there are many species in the wilderness of Judea and the Sinai peninsula. 2) Heb. shablul (Ps. 58:8), the snail or slug proper.… … Easton's Bible Dictionary
snail — noun ADJECTIVE ▪ edible ▪ aquatic, land, marine, pond, sea, water SNAIL + NOUN ▪ she … Collocations dictionary
