Also ‑idan.
Taxonomic groups.
Latin, the neuter plural of ‑idēs, offspring of, from Greek.
Examples occur in both botany (Bryopsida, the class of the true mosses; Candida, a genus of yeast that can cause thrush) and zoology (Arachnida, the class containing the spiders, mites and related species; Pentastomida, a class of worms that are parasites of the respiratory tract of vertebrates). Adjectives are formed in ‑idan (arachnidan).
Copyright © Michael Quinion 2008–. All rights reserved. Your comments are very welcome.