odonate

From Translingual Odonata, from Ancient Greek ὀδούς (odoús, “tooth”), apparently because they have teeth on their mandibles, although most insects have toothed mandibles.

odonate (plural odonates)

1. Any carnivorous insect of the order Odonata; a dragonfly or damselfly.
   • 1980, Gordon H. Orians, Some Adaptations of Marsh-nesting Blackbirds, page 246,

     The proportion of these prey that were odonates can be estimated from the food sample data taken at the Potholes (Chapter Four; Orians and Horn, 1969).

   • 2009, Dennis Paulson, Dragonflies and Damselflies of the West, page 35,

     Thanks to concern about water birds, these activities have slowed in some regions, and mitigation efforts have provided new wetlands, some of them quite good for odonates.

   • 2013, Jill Lancaster, Barbara J. Downes, Aquatic Entomology, page 144,

     Aspects of such 'smart engineering' are found also in fossil odonates from the mid-Carboniferous, indicating that versatile flight was developed some 80-100 million years ago (Wootton et al. 1988).

• (any species of order Odonata): dragonfly (used loosely, technically incorrect)

• IPA^(key): /ɔ.dɔ.nat/

odonate m (plural odonates)

1. odonate