retractile

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The reader will remember that in the Vorticella previously described, the bells stood upon stalks that were very flexible, and retractile by means of a muscle running down their length.

From Marvels of Pond-life A Year's Microscopic Recreations by Slack, Henry J.

The jaws were widely extended, so that the sharp retractile teeth were plainly visible, and the forked tongue at intervals was shot forward, and gleamed in the sun.

From The Young Yagers A Narrative of Hunting Adventures in Southern Africa by Reid, Mayne

Most species have sharp, curved claws, often retractile between some of the lamellae or into a special sheath.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 5 "Gassendi, Pierre" to "Geocentric" by Various

The larv� have small retractile heads, and feed on low-growing plants, keeping themselves well concealed on the lower leaves close to the ground.

From Butterflies and Moths (British) by Furneaux, William S.

The genital and anal somites are not retractile within the last leg-bearing somite, and the gonopods typically persist in the male as small two-jointed appendages and in the female as jointed or unjointed sclerites.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 6 "Celtes, Konrad" to "Ceramics" by Various