scleractinian

From translingual Scleractinia +‎ -an.

• IPA^(key): /ˌsklɪəɹækˈtɪniən/

scleractinian (comparative more scleractinian, superlative most scleractinian)

1. Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of the corals of the order Scleractinia.
   • 2014, Elizabeth Kolbert, chapter 7, in The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, Henry Holt and Company:

     In the buildup to the big night—the mass spawning always occurs after sundown—the corals begin to “set,” which might be thought of as the scleractinian version of going into labor.

scleractinian (plural scleractinians)

1. Any of the corals of the order Scleractinia.