any marine invertebrate of the phylum Ctenophora, including the sea gooseberry and Venus's-girdle, whose body bears eight rows of fused cilia, for locomotion
Also called: comb jelly
Derived forms
ctenophoran (tɪˈnɒfərən)
adjective, noun
Word origin
C19: from New Latin ctenophorus, from Greek kteno-, kteis comb + -phore
ctenophore in American English
(ˈtɛnəˌfɔr; ˈtinəˌfɔr)
noun
any of a phylum (Ctenophora) of sea animals with an oval, transparent, jellylike body bearing eight rows of comblike plates that aid in swimming