zy·go·dac·tyl (z??g?-d?k?t?l, z?g??-)adj. also zy·go·dac·ty·lous (-t?-l?s) Having two toes projecting forward and two projecting backward, as certain climbing birds.n. A zygodactyl bird, such as a parrot.zy?go·dac?ty·ly (-t?-l?) n.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.zygodactyl (?za?????dækt?l; ?z???-) adj (Zoology) (of the feet of certain birds) having the first and fourth toes directed backwards and the second and third forwardsn (Zoology) a zygodactyl bird. Compare heterodactyl ?zygo?dactylism nCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014zy?go?dac?tyl (?za? g??dæk t?l, ?z?g ?-) adj. 1. (of a bird) having the toes of the foot arranged in pairs, with two toes pointed forward and two turned rearward, as woodpeckers. 2. of or pertaining to a zygodactyl bird. n. 3. a zygodactyl bird. [1825?35] zy`go?dac?tyl?ism, n. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.