Altricial

//ælˈtɹɪʃəl// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Such an animal.
Adjective
  1. 1
    Helpless at birth (of young animals); or having young which are helpless at birth.

    "Altricial young are typical among carnivores, which might be expected to be hampered in their hunting behaviour if the pregnant mother has to carry its young for a long period."

Adjective
  1. 1
    (of hatchlings) naked and blind and dependent on parents for food wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
altriciousaquilineaviandovelikegoosynesting

Example

More examples

"Altricial young are typical among carnivores, which might be expected to be hampered in their hunting behaviour if the pregnant mother has to carry its young for a long period."

Etymology

From New Latin Altrices (a former division of birds), plural of altrīx, the feminine of altor (“nourisher”), from alere (“to nourish”).

More for "altricial"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.