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Definition of atherstonia
atherstonia
/ˌæðərˈstoʊniə/
Ath · er · ston · i · a
atherstonia Lexical Profile
CEFR
C2
Grade
13
Tier
3
Usage
Rare
• noun
1
An extinct genus of palaeonisciform ray-finned fish that lived during the Permian and Triassic periods, with fossil records notably discovered in the Karoo Supergroup of South Africa.
Example
"Paleontologists carefully excavated the delicate, fossilized scales of an Atherstonia specimen from the Permian rock layer."
• Rhymes for atherstonia
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Named in honor of William Guybon Atherstone, a 19th-century South African medical practitioner and pioneer in geology and paleontology, combined with the standard taxonomic suffix '-ia'.
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Atherstonia. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 12, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/atherstonia