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thecodontian
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thecodontian

fossil reptile group
Also known as: Thecodontia
Written and fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
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History

thecodontian, archaic term formerly applied to any member of a group of primitive archosaurs (“ruling reptiles”) thought to include the ancestral stock of all other archosaurs, including birds, dinosaurs, pterosaurs (extinct flying reptiles), and crocodiles. The name thecodont means “socket-toothed.”