tadpole

tadpolefrom top to bottom:egg and three stages of a tadpole metamorphosing into a frog

tad·pole

T0011200 (tăd′pōl′)n. The aquatic larva of a frog or toad, having gills, a long, laterally compressed tail, and in early stages, no limbs. During metamorphosis of a tadpole into an adult, legs and lungs develop, and the tail gradually disappears. Also called polliwog.

[Middle English taddepol : tadde, tode, toad; see toad + pol, head; see poll.]Word History: The word tadpole, which first appears in English in the 1400s, is an old compound word whose meaning is no longer transparent. Tad is a variant of the word toad, while pole is simply an alternative spelling of poll, meaning "head." Tadpole thus means "a toad that is all head," so to speak. Nowadays, the original meaning of the word poll, "head," is most prominent in poll tax, "a tax consisting of a fixed amount and levied on all individuals," a kind of tax that also often used to be called a head tax. (In modern times, poll taxes are most often levied on adults eligible to vote.) The most common senses of poll today are probably "a survey of public opinion" and "the place where votes are cast." The word probably developed these senses at least partly through the notion of the head as the most prominent part of each individual in a crowd—the part that could be counted. A similar notion is found in the phrase "a head of cattle."

tadpole

(ˈtædˌpəʊl) n (Animals) the aquatic larva of frogs, toads, etc, which develops from a limbless tailed form with external gills into a form with internal gills, limbs, and a reduced tail[C15 taddepol, from tadde toad + pol head, poll]

tad•pole

(ˈtæd poʊl)

n. the aquatic larva of frogs and toads, having internal gills and a tail. [1400–50; late Middle English tad(de)pol=tad(de) toad + pol poll]

tadpoledevelopment of a frog from a fertilized egg through several tadpole stages

tad·pole

(tăd′pōl′) The larval stage of a frog or toad. A tadpole lives in the water, has a tail and gills, and has no limbs. The tail and gills disappear as the legs and lungs develop on the way to the adult stage.

Thesaurus

Noun

tadpole - a larval frog or toad polliwog, pollywogamphibia, class Amphibia - the class of vertebrates that live on land but breed in water; frogs; toads; newts; salamanders; caecilianslarva - the immature free-living form of most invertebrates and amphibians and fish which at hatching from the egg is fundamentally unlike its parent and must metamorphose

Translations

蝌蚪

tadpole

(ˈtӕdpəul) noun a young frog or toad in its first stage of development. 蝌蚪

tadpole

→ 蝌蚪zhCN

tadpole

tadpole,

larval, aquatic stage of any of the amphibianamphibian,
in zoology, cold-blooded vertebrate animal of the class Amphibia. There are three living orders of amphibians: the frogs and toads (order Anura, or Salientia), the salamanders and newts (order Urodela, or Caudata), and the caecilians, or limbless amphibians (order
..... Click the link for more information. animals. After hatching from the egg, the tadpole, sometimes called a polliwog, is gill-breathing and legless and propels itself by means of a tail. During the period of metamorphosismetamorphosis
[Gr.,=transformation], in zoology, term used to describe a form of development from egg to adult in which there is a series of distinct stages. Many insects, amphibians, mollusks, crustaceans, and fishes undergo metamorphosis, which may involve a change in habitat,
..... Click the link for more information. it develops the lungs, legs, and other organs of the adult and, in the frog and the toad, loses the tail.

Tadpole

the larva of tailless amphibians. Developing from eggs, tadpoles live an aquatic life. They have external gills, a two-chambered heart, a long tail that serves for movement, an adhering organ used for attachment to underwater objects, and lateral line organs: there are no extremities. Tadpoles feed chiefly on plants.

After three or four months of development, metamorphosis takes place. The heart becomes three-chambered, breathing by means of lungs develops, a second circulatory system (respiratory circulation) develops, the gills and gill chamber become reduced, the tail disappears, and the hind legs grow greatly, becoming the basic organs for movement. The horny beak drops off, the mouth enlarges, and the intestine shortens. The sense organs also change. The middle ear chamber develops along with the drum, and the eyes acquire movable lids. The lateral line organs disappear. When these changes are completed, a small frog comes onto dry land with the fully developed extremities of a terrestrial vertebrate.

tadpole

[′tad‚pōl] (vertebrate zoology) The larva of a frog or toad; at hatching it has a rounded body with a long fin-bordered tail, and the gills are external but shortly become enclosed.

tadpole

the aquatic larva of frogs, toads, etc., which develops from a limbless tailed form with external gills into a form with internal gills, limbs, and a reduced tail

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Synonyms for tadpole

noun a larval frog or toad

Synonyms

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