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| al·tri·cial [ al tríshəl ] |
adjective |
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| Definition: |
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helpless and dependent: describes birds or mammals that are helpless when young and dependent on their parents for food
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noun (plural al·tri·cials) |
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| Definition: |
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animal producing helpless young: a bird or mammal that produces young that are unable to move or feed themselves without help
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| [Late 19th century. < modern Latin Altrices (former division of birds), plural of Latin altrix "female nourisher" < alere "nourish"] |
