cryp·to·di·ra \ˌkriptəˈdīrə\noun plural Usage: capitalized Etymology: New Latin, from crypt- + -dira (from Greek deirē neck); akin to Latin vorare to devour — more at voracious in some classifications: a suborder of Thecophora comprising turtles that bend the neck in a vertical plane in order to retract it into the shell • cryp·to·di·ran\| ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷| ̷ ̷rən\adjective or noun • cryp·to·dire\ˈ ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷ˌdī(ə)r\noun-s • cryp·to·di·rous\| ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷|dīrəs\adjective