superfamily

noun

Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úp Proto-Indo-European *-er Proto-Indo-European *upér Proto-Italic *super Latin super Latin super-lbor. English super- English family English superfamily From super- + family.

1. A taxonomic category above family and below order (and its subdivisions).

   “There is no reason to deny a natural sequence or to split off genera only to have to attempt later to re-insert them into the whole by means of subordos and superfamilies.”

   “The genus Saipanetta has been suggested to be a surviving relict of the metacopidan superfamily Healdiacea because of its muscle scar pattern and narrow duplicature; nevertheless, it differs from the Metacopida in its more complex hingement, lack of a distinct contact groove, exaggerated domiciliar asymmetry, and lack of posterior ridges or angulations.”

2. A large group of related proteins or other molecules.