LAMELLIBRANCH

[la.mel.li.branch] n, pl -branchs [NL Lamellibranchia, fr. lamell- + L branchia gill] (1855): any of a class (Lamellibranchia) of bivalve mollusks (as clams, oysters, and mussels) that have the body bilaterally symmetrical, compressed, and enclosed within the mantle and that build up a shell whose right and left parts are connected by a hinge over the animal's back -- lamellibranch adj