A·can·thŏp·te·rȳg'i·ous, a.

a. [Gr. ἄκανθα, thorn, and πτερύγιον, diminutive from πτερόν, πτερόν, wing, feather.] (Zoöl.) Having fins in which the rays are hard and spine-like;—a term used to describe an order of fishes. Dana.