Zool. Also chætodont. [mod.L. f. Gr. χαίτη hair + ὀδούς (ὀδοντ-) tooth.] A Linnæan genus of spiny-finned fishes (modern family Chætodontidæ), remarkable for their bristle-like teeth and bright colors.
c. 1750. Hill, Hist. Anim., 275 (Jod.). The chætodon variegated with longitudinal lines and a forked tail. This is a native of the American ocean.
1774. Goldsm., Nat. Hist. (1790), VI. i. 302 (Jod.). The chætodon or catfish.
1854. Owen, in Circ. Sc. (1865), II. 95/1. Setiform teeth are common in the fishes thence called Chætodonts.
1887. T. Martin, in Blackw. Mag., Sept., 402. The prickly roach, the chaetodon with him And the hammer fish.
