odonateodonate means any carnivorous insect of the order Odonata; a dragonfly or damselfly. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 88 out of 100.EtymologyFrom translingual Odonata, from Ancient Greek ὀδούς (odoús, “tooth”), apparently because they have teeth on their mandibles, although most insects have toothed mandibles.nounAny carnivorous insect of the order Odonata; a dragonfly or damselfly.“The proportion of these prey that were odonates can be estimated from the food sample data taken at the Potholes (Chapter Four; Orians and Horn, 1969).”