: a limb (such as an arm, wing, fin, or leg) that is situated anteriorly
the forelimb of a bat
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the WebThe limbs never dropped below a forelimb-to-femur ratio of 0.4 and remained functional. Tim Newcomb, Popular Mechanics, 13 July 2022 Tyrannosaurs went through a similar shift over time, and so shortening the forelimb seems to be a shared response to becoming a large meat-eating dinosaur with a powerful bite. Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 July 2022 This exquisite specimen is almost complete, missing only one forelimb and a few digits. Jeanne Timmons, Ars Technica, 25 May 2022 For a typical walking animal, this creates a serious problem with gait: the forelimbs have to move into an awkward forward position for the animal to be balanced. Michael B. Habib, Scientific American, 1 Oct. 2019 Unlike suspensory great apes that favor their forelimbs and bipedal hominins which prefer their hindlimbs, the anatomy of D. guggenmosi indicates that the ancient primate used both sets of limbs equally. Andrea Michelson, Smithsonian, 6 Nov. 2019 Taking cues from the anatomy of pterosaurs, which are real creatures that lived millions of years ago, Game of Thrones creator George R. R. Martin instead imagined his fictional dragons to have four limbs: two wings for forelimbs and two hind legs. John Pickrell, National Geographic, 26 Nov. 2019 An earlier fossil found in South Africa revealed an adult from this group with its forelimb surrounding multiple juveniles, in what looks like a protective posture. Tim Vernimmen, National Geographic, 23 Dec. 2019 Longer than an ocean liner and powered by strong forelimbs for grabbing unsuspecting creatures, the monster also had a graceful, feline-esque shape with shoulder blades above its spine and a long tail. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 19 Dec. 2019 See More