ARTHROPOD

[ar.thro.pod] n [NL Arthropoda, fr. arthr- + Gk pod-, pous foot--more at foot] (1877): any of a phylum (Arthropoda) of invertebrate animals (as insects, arachnids, and crustaceans) that have a segmented body and jointed appendages, a usu. chitinous exoskeleton molted at intervals, and a dorsal anterior brain connected to a ventral chain of ganglia -- arthropod adj -- ar.throp.o.dan adj