carnivorous

/kɑ:'nivərəs/

Thân thiện

A Venus flytrap is a carnivorous plant that catches insects.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Feeding on animals: Describes organisms, including both animals and certain plants, that obtain nutrients by consuming animal flesh or tissue.
   • Characteristic of a carnivore: Relating to the traits, behaviors, or classification of flesh-eating animals.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Lions, tigers, and wolves are carnivorous mammals.
  • The Venus flytrap is a well-known carnivorous plant that traps insects.
  • The study focused on the hunting strategies of carnivorous dinosaurs.

Advanced Usage

• Ecological Context: Used to describe an organism's trophic level or role in the food chain.
  • The disappearance of a top carnivorous predator can disrupt an entire ecosystem.
• Figurative Use: Can be applied metaphorically to describe something aggressively consuming or destructive.
  • The carnivorous nature of the corporate takeover left no competitors standing.

Variants and Related Words

• Carnivore (noun): An animal that feeds primarily on flesh.
  • A cat is an obligate carnivore.
• Carnivory (noun): The practice or condition of eating animal flesh.
  • The plant's carnivory is an adaptation to nutrient-poor soil.

Synonyms

• Predatory: Preying naturally on other animals.
• Flesh-eating: Consuming the flesh of animals.

Antonyms

• Herbivorous: Feeding on plants.
• Omnivorous: Feeding on both plants and animals.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. (used of plants as well as animals) feeding on animals
   • carnivorous plants are capable of trapping and digesting small animals especially insects
2. relating to or characteristic of carnivores
   • the lion and other carnivorous animals