(of mammals and certain reptiles) having teeth that grow in sockets
2.
of or relating to teeth of this type
noun
3.
any extinct reptile of the order Thecodontia, of Triassic times, having teeth set in sockets: they gave rise to the dinosaurs, crocodiles, pterodactyls, and birds
Word origin
C20: New Latin Thecondontia, from Greek thēkē case + -odont
thecodont in American English
(ˈθikəˌdɑnt)
noun
any of an order (Thecodontia) of reptiles of the Permian and Triassic periods, believed to be ancestors of the dinosaurs and crocodilians