any multicellular animal of the group Metazoa: includes all animals except sponges
adjective also: metazoic, metazoal
2.
of, relating to, or belonging to the Metazoa
Word origin
C19: from New Latin Metazoa; see meta-, -zoa
metazoan in American English
(ˌmɛtəˈzoʊən)
noun
1.
in some systems of classification, any of the very large subkingdom (Metazoa) made up of all animals whose bodies, originating from a single cell, are composed of many differentiated cells arranged into definite organs