/ ɪnˈvɜːtɪbrət; NAmE -ˈvɜːrt-/ noun
( technical ) any animal with no backbone , for example a worm
—compare vertebrate
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WORD ORIGIN
early 19th cent. (as a noun): from modern Latin invertebrata (plural) the invertebrates (former taxonomic group), from French invertébrés , from in- without + Latin vertebra (from vertere to turn).