The name "Ctenochasma" was coined by the German paleontologist Christian Erich Hermann von Meyer in 1852, based on a single lower jaw full of closely packed teeth which he gave the species name "Ctenochasma roemeri". A second species, "C. gracile", was named by Oppel in 1862 based on a fragmentary skull. However, a year earlier, another, more complete specimen probably belonging to the same species was described and named "Pterodactylus elegans" by Wagner. Because the species name "elegans" was named before "gracile", the species is now known as "Ctenochasma elegans". Another specimen originally attributed to a small or juvenile "Pterodactylus", "P. brevirostris" (Wellnhofer's "example 29", which was later placed in its own genus "Ptenodracon"), probably represents a young juvenile "Ctenochasma" based on similar wing bone proportions that differ from the similar "Aurorazhdarcho". An additional species, "C. porocristata", was named by Paul de Buisonjé in 1981. However, it was differentiated mainly by the presence of a crest along the snout, which has since been shown to be a feature related to growth or sex, rather than species.