Adjacent Words

aardvark definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: nocturnal burrowing mammal of the grasslands of Africa that feeds on termites; sole extant representative of the order Tubulidentata [syn: aardvark, ant bear, anteater, Orycteropus afer]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: obsolete Afrikaans (now erdvark), from Afrikaans aard earth + vark pig Date: 1822 a large burrowing nocturnal mammal (Orycteropus afer) of sub-Saharan Africa that has a long snout, extensible tongue, powerful claws, large ears, and heavy tail and feeds especially on termites and ants

Britannica Concise

Heavily built mammal (Orycteropus afer) of sub-Saharan forests and plains. Its stout, piglike body ("aardvark" is Afrikaans for "earth pig") may be as long as 6 ft (1.8 m), incl. a 2-ft (60-cm) tail. It has a long snout, rabbitlike ears, short legs, and long toes with large, flattened claws. It feeds at night by ripping open ant and termite nests and lapping up the insects with a long (1-ft, or 30-cm), sticky tongue. Though not aggressive, it uses claws to fight off attackers. Its classification with regard to other mammals is uncertain.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. a nocturnal mammal of southern Africa, Orycteropus afer, with a tubular snout and a long extendible tongue, that feeds on termites. Also called ant-bear, earth-hog. Etymology: Afrik. f. aarde earth + vark pig