fossilfos‧sil /ˈfɒsəl $ ˈfɑː-/ ●●○ noun [countable] 
an animal or plant that lived many thousands of years ago and that has been preserved, or the shape of one of these animals or plants that has been preserved in rock: 
fossils of early reptiles Marine sponges have a long fossil record (=their development has been recorded over a long period).2informal an insulting word for an old person
WORD ORIGINfossil
Origin:
1500-1600 Latin fossilis ‘dug up’, from fodere ‘to dig’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Several dinosaur fossils were found in Montana.
- I wanted to go out collecting fossils at a place about a mile from here.
- Lake beds are thought to be the most likely source of fossils.
- Paleontologists have found many transitional fossils representing intermediate forms in the evolution of one major form of life into another.
- Their fossils are commonest in Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous rocks.
- There have been several suggestions as to how fossil agnathans may fit into a scheme such as this.
- We know about them from fossil records.
THESAURUS
a piece of the hard substance that forms the main surface of the Earth. In British English, rocks are too large to pick up, but in American English, they can either be large or small: · the rocks along the riverbanks
a small piece of rock, found on the ground or near the surface of the ground. Speakers of American English are more likely to use the word rock than stone: · The children were throwing stones into the water.
a large round piece of rock: · She climbed over a few boulders at the edge of the sea.
a small smooth stone found especially on a beach or on the bottom of a river: · The beach was covered with smooth white pebbles.
a rock which has the shape of an animal or plant that lived many thousands of years ago: · fossils of early reptiles
WORD SETSaerobic, adjectiveafterbirth, nounalgae, nounalimentary canal, nounamber, nounameba, nounamino acid, nounamoeba, nounanaconda, nounanaerobic, adjectiveandrogynous, adjectiveantibody, nounantigen, nounantitoxin, nounappendage, nounarm, nounarmour, nounasexual, adjectiveassimilation, nounatrophy, verbaviary, nounbacteria, nounbacteriology, nounbarnacle, nounbile, nounbinocular vision, nounbio-, prefixbiochemistry, nounbiodegradable, adjectivebiodiversity, nounbiohazard, nounbiological, adjectivebiological clock, nounbiology, nounbiomass, nounbiome, nounbiosphere, nounblind, nounbrain, nounbreathe, verbbreed, verbbreed, nounbreeding, nounbristle, nounbulb, nouncapsule, nouncarbohydrate, nouncarbon dioxide, nouncarnivore, nouncell, nouncellular, adjectivecellulose, nouncentral nervous system, nouncervical, adjectivecholesterol, nounchromosome, nouncirculation, nouncirculatory, adjectiveclass, nounclone, nouncold-blooded, adjectiveconceive, verbconch, nounconnective tissue, nouncopulate, verbcoral reef, nouncornea, nouncoronary, adjectivecorpuscle, nouncortex, nouncortisone, nouncowrie, nouncrab, nouncrawfish, nouncrayfish, nouncreature, nouncross, verbcrossbreed, nounculture, nouncytoplasm, noundecay, verbdecay, noundecompose, verbdefecate, verbdenizen, noundextrose, noundiaphragm, noundigest, verbdigestion, noundigestive, adjectiveDNA, noundorsal, adjectivedry rot, nounduct, noundwarf, noundwarf, adjectiveecological, adjectiveecology, nounecosystem, nounegg, nounejaculate, verbembryo, nounembryonic, adjectiveenzyme, nounepidermis, nounevolution, nounevolutionary, adjectiveexcrement, nounexcrescence, nounexcrete, verbexcretion, nounexhale, verbexoskeleton, nounextinction, nounfaeces, nounfamily, nounfang, nounfat, nounfatty acid, nounfauna, nounfeces, nounfeed, verbfemale, adjectivefemale, nounferment, verbferment, nounfertile, adjectivefertility, nounfertilize, verbfission, nounflank, nounflatulence, nounflesh, nounfleshy, adjectiveflightless, adjectiveflora, nounfoetal, adjectivefoetus, nounfoliage, nounfossil, nounfreak, nounfreshwater, adjectivefructose, noungamete, nounganglion, noungene, noungene pool, noungenera, genetic, adjectivegenetic code, noungenetic engineering, noungenetic fingerprinting, noungenetics, noungenome, noungenus, noungestation, noungland, nounglandular, adjectiveglucose, noungluten, noungonad, noungrass snake, noungrow, verbgrowth, nounhabitat, nounhaemoglobin, nounhearing, nounheart, nounhemisphere, nounherbivore, nounhereditary, adjectiveheredity, nounhermaphrodite, nounhibernate, verbhistamine, nounhoming, adjectivehormone, nounhost, nounimpregnate, verbimpulse, nounincubate, verbindigenous, adjectiveinfected, adjectiveinfertile, adjectiveinfest, verbingest, verbinhale, verbinseminate, verbinsensate, adjectiveinsulin, nounintegument, nounintercourse, nouninterferon, nounintestine, nouninvertebrate, nouninvoluntary, adjectiveiris, nounjaw, nounjelly, nounkidney, nounkrill, nounlactate, verblactation, nounlactic acid, nounleech, nounleg, nounlesser, adjectivelichen, nounlife, nounlife cycle, nounlife form, nounligament, nounlimb, nounlimpet, nounlipid, nounliver, nounliving fossil, nounlocomotion, nounlymph, nounlymph node, nounmale, adjectivemale, nounmammal, nounmandible, nounmate, nounmate, verbmembrane, nounmetabolism, nounmetabolize, verbmetamorphosis, nounmicrobe, nounmicrobiology, nounmicroorganism, nounmicroscopic, adjectivemigrate, verbmigratory, adjectivemiscarriage, nounmolar, nounmorphology, nounmotor, adjectivemould, nounmouth, nounmucous membrane, nounmucus, nounmulticellular, adjectivemuscle, nounmuscular, adjectivemutant, nounmutate, verbmutation, nounnatural history, nounnatural selection, nounnature, nounneck, nounnectar, nounnerve, nounnervous, adjectivenervous system, nounneural, adjectiveneuro-, prefixneurology, nounnode, nounnose, nounnostril, nounnucleic acid, nounnucleus, nounnutrient, nounnutriment, nounoesophagus, nounoestrogen, nounolfactory, adjectiveoptic, adjectiveorgan, nounorganic, adjectiveorganic chemistry, nounorganism, nounorifice, nounossify, verbosteo-, prefixoutgrowth, nounova, ovary, nounoverwinter, verboviduct, nounoviparous, adjectiveovulate, verbovum, nounparasite, nounpathogen, nounpedigree, nounpelvic, adjectivepelvis, nounpenile, adjectivepenis, nounpepsin, nounperiod, nounperspiration, nounperspire, verbphotosynthesis, nounphylum, nounpigment, nounpigmentation, nounplankton, nounplasma, nounpollinate, verbpostnatal, adjectivepregnancy, nounpregnant, adjectivepremature, adjectiveprenatal, adjectiveproduct, nounproliferation, nounpropagate, verbprotein, nounprotoplasm, nounprotozoan, nounpuberty, nounpulmonary, adjectivepulp, nounpulsation, nounputrefy, verbputrid, adjectivered blood cell, nounregurgitate, verbrenal, adjectivereproduce, verbreproduction, nounreproductive, adjectiverespiration, nounrespiratory, adjectiverespire, verbretina, nounroot, nounrot, verbrot, nounruff, nounsac, nounsaliva, nounsalivary gland, nounsalivate, verbsaltwater, adjectivescale, nounscallop, nounscaly, adjectivesebaceous, adjectivesecrete, verbsecretion, nounsemen, nounsense organ, nounsensory, adjectiveserum, nounsex, nounsex, verbsexless, adjectivesexual intercourse, nounsheath, nounshell, nounsibling, nounskeletal, adjectiveskeleton, nounskin, nounskull, nounspasm, nounspasmodic, adjectivespecies, nounspecimen, nounsperm, nounspiderweb, nounspinal cord, nounspine, nounspineless, adjectivestarch, nounstem cell, nounstimulate, verbstimulus, nounstrain, nounsubject, nounsubspecies, nounsucker, nounsucrose, nounsweat, verbsweat, nounsweat gland, nounsymbiosis, nounsystemic, adjectivetail, nountaxonomy, nounteeth, testosterone, nountest-tube baby, nountissue, nountrachea, nountube, noununicellular, adjectiveurethra, nounuric, adjectiveurinate, verburine, nounvariety, nounvector, nounvein, nounvenom, nounvenomous, adjectiveventricle, nounvertebra, nounvertebrate, nounvivisection, nounwarm-blooded, adjectivewean, verbwildlife, nounwindpipe, nounyolk, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY Marine sponges have a long fossil record (=their development has been recorded over a long period).COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
1 Marine sponges have a long fossil record (=their development has been recorded over a long period). (=a fuel such as coal or oil, produced by the gradual decaying of plants and animals)· Global warming may be caused by burning fossil fuels.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE· The main global-warming gas, after all, is carbon dioxide, given off mainly by burning fossil fuels.· Geothermal energy does not involve the burning of fossil fuels and therefore makes a negligible contribution to global warming.· This staining on marble is the result of dry deposition from sulphur dioxide gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels.· Nor do they contribute to environmental pollution by burning fossil fuels.· Hasn't he any conception of the devastation caused to this planet by burning fossil fuels?· And they produce oxygen which animals need to breathe, and which helps to replace that lost by burning fossil fuels.
· How do you begin an interview with a three-million-year old fossil?· And bacteria, besides being the simplest form of life we know, are also among the oldest fossils we have discovered.
NOUN· A fossil assemblage accumulated by a predator thus may not represent any single mammal community from any one habitat.· Of course, many graptoloids also drifted into shallower water, where they are associated with a more normal kind of fossil assemblage.· It is important to distinguish the influences of both, as both may introduce particular sets of biases into the fossil assemblage.
· Half a million fossil bones of reptiles and birds have been found in the lava tubes scattered across the landscape.· Owls Owls are probably the major contributors to fossil bone assemblages.
· The fossil evidence is confirmed by the record of the genes.· Several specialists questioned whether there is enough fossil evidence yet to support a claim for a new genus.· It is thought that the very first placental mammals were tiny insectivores, but no fossil evidence of them remains.
· This staining on marble is the result of dry deposition from sulphur dioxide gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels.· An obvious and technically achievable alternative to fossil fuel combustion is nuclear fission.· Alternative Energy Sources One of the major problems of fossil fuels and particularly coal is pollution.· After all, your editorial on fossil fuels, fearlessly and correctly reported global warming data in degrees Celsius.· Now, remaining supplies of fossil fuels should be saved, not squandered.· But all fossil fuels, especially the cleanest anthracite, burn to produce abundant carbon dioxide.· Nor do they contribute to environmental pollution by burning fossil fuels.· The carbon tax could lead to a doubling of prices for fossil fuels.
· We also know that the fossil record is fragmentary in the extreme.· We know about them from fossil records.· Most are microscopic, and many have no skeleton and therefore lack a fossil record.· The fossil record shows that species do not evolve, &.· Crocodiles and lizards have a fossil record extending back to the Triassic, snakes to the Cretaceous.· In the 1850s the fossil record began to yield evidence for a new kind of trend within the development of each class.· The greatest problems in the fossil record, however, are the sudden extinctions.· The growth of the human embryo recapitulated the history of animal life as revealed by the fossil record.
· We know this from their fossil remains.· Their fossil remains seem to occur with other animals and plants, which are generally accepted as terrestrial.
· Figure 7.1 illustrates the very obvious way in which a new fossil species may seem to be diachronous.· A few other fossil species of Rhus are known from the Tertiary rocks.· A major difficulty arises when fossil species disappear for good as the physical environment, over millions of years, inevitably changes.· Ants frequently got caught in the pine resins that were destined to become amber, and numerous fossil species have been recognized.· The thicker shelled species often carry a distinctive sculpture, which is also important in identifying fossil species.· There are species living today related to this fossil species.
VERB· Do we carry on burning fossil fuels at rapid rates?· We are hastening this process with the burning of fossil fuels.
· Beneath the age of reptiles lay a series of formations containing the fossils only of aquatic creatures.· The importance of the Temple Butte is that it contains fossil skeletons of primitive fish.· Although none of these rocks contain fossils of shelled organisms, some of them do include fossils of single-celled microorganisms.· The Phanerozoic time scale of rocks containing fossils of higher organisms represents 570 million years.
· Many species of coelacanth have been found as fossils.· For example, you never find horse fossils among trilobite remains.· A complete media is found in many Palaeozoic fossil insects and in the Ephemeroptera among recent forms.· Paleontologists have found many transitional fossils representing intermediate forms in the evolution of one major form of life into another.· Here, no vertebrates at all could be found, the fossils consisting only of invertebrates such as the trilobites.· It will now be clear why you can sometimes find so many different fossil gastropod shells together in a single fossil deposit.· Wave of hope Mars probe may have found fossil seas Scientists hope that they may yet discover life on Mars.· After finding a fossil knee, Johanson needed a modern knee for comparison.
· They are living fossils, reminders of a universe now lost.· The shock of seeing these living fossils of Xinjiang first led him to question their authenticity.· Fortunately, whales-as much as viruses-are living fossils.
· Cartilage does not preserve as fossil as a rule, so most of the evidence of the shark-like fish rests upon teeth.· The zooids themselves are, or course, not preserved as fossils - we only have their vacated homes.
· These will all reduce emissions from fossil fuels and so help combat global warming and acid deposition.
· The series of fossils shown here demonstrate the different sizes gastropods of one species attain.· The fossil record shows that species do not evolve, &.· More interesting still, recent fossil discoveries show that the hip bones of some giant dinosaurs were almost hollow.
an animal or plant that lived many thousands of years ago and that has been preserved, or the shape of one of these animals or plants that has been preserved in rock: fossils of early reptiles Marine sponges have a long fossil record (=their development has been recorded over a long period).2informal an insulting word for an old person