Definition of theropoda Theropoda

We found 4 definitions of theropoda from 4 different sources.

What does theropoda mean?

Noun
theropoda - carnivorous saurischian dinosaurs with short forelimbs; Jurassic and Cretaceous
		suborder Theropoda
		animal order the order of animals
		sauropodomorpha, suborder sauropodomorpha gigantic herbivorous dinosaurs having huge bodies with long necks and small heads: Prosauropoda and Sauropoda (apatosaurus, diplodocus and titanosaurs)
		bird-footed dinosaur, theropod, theropod dinosaur any of numerous carnivorous dinosaurs of the Triassic to Cretaceous with short forelimbs that walked or ran on strong hind legs
		suborder ceratosaura primitive saurischian dinosaurs
		carnosaura, suborder carnosaura largest carnivorous land animals ever known
		genus compsognathus a reptile genus of Theropoda
		genus herrerasaurus primitive theropod found in Argentina; early Triassic
		genus eoraptor primitive theropod found in Argentina; early Triassic
		family megalosauridae, megalosauridae megalosaurs
		ornithomimida, suborder ornithomimida lightly built medium-size theropods

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theropoda (n. pl.)
An order of carnivorous dinosaurs in which the feet are less birdlike, and hence more like those of an ordinary quadruped, than in the Ornithopoda. It includes the rapacious genera Megalosaurus, Creosaurus, and their allies.

Theropods ('beast foot') are a group of bipedal saurischian dinosaurs. Although they were primarily carnivorous, a number of theropod families evolved herbivory, during the Cretaceous Period. Theropods first appear during the Carnian age of the Late Triassic about 220 million years ago. Then, they were the sole large terrestrial carnivores from the Early Jurassic until the close of the Cretaceous, about 65 million years ago. Today, they are represented by the 9,300 living species of birds, which evolved in the Late Jurassic from small specialized coelurosaurian dinosaurs.

Among the features linking theropods to birds are the three-toed foot, a furcula (wishbone), air-filled bones and (in some cases) feathers and brooding of the eggs.