Adjacent Words

Elephant definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

EL'EPHANT, n. [L. elephas, elephantus; probably from the Heb. a leader or chief, the chief or great animal.]
1. The largest of all quadrupeds, belonging to the order of Bruta. This animal has no foreteeth in either jaw; the canine-teeth are very long; and he has a long proboscis or trunk, by which he conveys food and drink to his mouth. The largest of these animals is about 16 feet long and 14 feet high; but smaller varieties are not more than seven feet high. The eyes are small and the feet short,round,clumsy, and distinguishable only by the toes. The trunk is a cartilaginous and muscular tube, extending from the upper jaw, and is seven or eight feet in length. The general shape of his body resembles that of swine. His skin is rugged, and his hair thin, The two large tusks are of a yellowish color,and extremely hard. The bony substance of these is called ivory. The elephant is 30 years in coming to his full growth, and he lives to 150 or 200 years of age. Elephants are natives of the warm climates of Africa and Asia, where they are employed as beasts of burden. They were formerly used in war.
2. Ivory; the tusk of the elephant.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: five-toed pachyderm
2: the symbol of the Republican Party; introduced in cartoons by Thomas Nast in 1874

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural elephants; also elephant) Usage: often attributive Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French olifant, elefant, from L. elephantus, from Greek elephant-, elephas Date: 14th century 1. any of a family (Elephantidae, the elephant family) of thickset usually extremely large nearly hairless herbivorous mammals that have a snout elongated into a muscular trunk and two incisors in the upper jaw developed especially in the male into large ivory tusks and that include two living forms and various extinct relatives: as a. a tall large-eared mammal (Loxodonta africana) of tropical Africa — called also African elephant b. a relatively small-eared mammal (Elephas maximus) of forests of southeastern Asia — called also Asian elephant, Indian elephant 2. an animal or fossil related to the elephants 3. one that is uncommonly large or hard to manage

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. same or elephants) 1 the largest living land animal, of which two species survive, the larger African (Loxodonta africana) and the smaller Indian (Elephas maximus), both with a trunk and long curved ivory tusks. 2 a size of paper (711 x 584 mm). Phrases and idioms: elephant grass any of various tall African grasses, esp. Pennisetum purpureum. elephant seal = sea elephant. elephant shrew any small insect-eating mammal of the family Macroscelididae, native to Africa, having a long snout and long hind limbs. Derivatives: elephantoid adj. Etymology: ME olifaunt etc. f. OF oli-, elefant ult. f. L elephantus, elephans f. Gk elephas -antos ivory, elephant

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Elephant El"e*phant, n. [OE. elefaunt, olifant, OF. olifant, F. ['e]l['e]phant, L. elephantus, elephas, -antis, fr. Gr. ?, ?; of unknown origin; perh. fr. Skr. ibha, with the Semitic article al, el, prefixed, or fr. Semitic Aleph hindi Indian bull; or cf. Goth. ulbandus camel, AS. olfend.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) A mammal of the order Proboscidia, of which two living species, Elephas Indicus and E. Africanus, and several fossil species, are known. They have a proboscis or trunk, and two large ivory tusks proceeding from the extremity of the upper jaw, and curving upwards. The molar teeth are large and have transverse folds. Elephants are the largest land animals now existing. 2. Ivory; the tusk of the elephant. [Obs.] --Dryden.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(elephants) An elephant is a very large animal with a long, flexible nose called a trunk, which it uses to pick up things. Elephants live in India and Africa. N-COUNT see also white elephant

Easton's Bible Dictionary

not found in Scripture except indirectly in the original Greek word (elephantinos) translated "of ivory" in Rev. 18:12, and in the Hebrew word (shenhabim, meaning "elephant's tooth") rendered "ivory" in 1 Kings 10:22 and 2 Chr. 9:21.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

el'-e-fant

(Job 40:15 the King James Version margin, the American Revised Version, margin "hippopotamus," the Revised Version (British and American) "ivory"); 1Ki 10:22 the King James Version margin; 2Ch 9:21 the King James Version; /APC 1Macc 3:34; 6:28 ff; 8:6 Possibly in Job it is the extinct mammoth.

See BEHEMOTH; IVORY.

Moby Thesaurus

Angora goat, Arctic fox, Belgian hare, Caffre cat, Indian buffalo, Jumbo, Kodiak bear, Siberian husky, Virginia deer, aardvark, aardwolf, alpaca, anteater, antelope, antelope chipmunk, aoudad, apar, armadillo, ass, aurochs, badger, bandicoot, bassarisk, bat, bear, beast of burden, beaver, bettong, binturong, bison, black bear, black buck, black cat, black fox, black sheep, blue fox, bobcat, brown bear, brush deer, brush wolf, buffalo, buffalo wolf, burro, burro deer, cachalot, camel, camelopard, capybara, carabao, caribou, carpincho, cat, cat-a-mountain, catamount, cattalo, cavy, chamois, cheetah, chevrotain, chinchilla, chipmunk, cinnamon bear, coon, coon cat, cotton mouse, cotton rat, cougar, cow, coyote, coypu, deer, deer tiger, dingo, dinosaur, dog, donkey, dormouse, draft animal, dromedary, echidna, eland, elk, ermine, eyra, fallow deer, ferret, field mouse, fisher, fitch, flying phalanger, foumart, fox, fox squirrel, gazelle, gemsbok, genet, giraffe, glutton, gnu, gnu goat, goat, goat antelope, gopher, grizzly bear, ground squirrel, groundhog, guanaco, guinea pig, hamster, hare, harnessed antelope, hartebeest, hathi, hedgehog, hippo, hippopotamus, hog, horse, husky, hyena, hyrax, ibex, jackal, jackass, jackrabbit, jaguar, jaguarundi, jerboa, jerboa kangaroo, jumbo, kaama, kangaroo, kangaroo mouse, kangaroo rat, karakul, kinkajou, kit fox, koala, lapin, lemming, leopard, leopard cat, leviathan, lion, llama, lynx, malamute, mammoth, mara, marmot, marten, mastodon, meerkat, mink, mole, mongoose, monster, moose, mouflon, mountain goat, mountain lion, mountain sheep, mouse, mule, mule deer, muntjac, musk deer, musk hog, musk-ox, muskrat, musquash, nilgai, nutria, ocelot, okapi, onager, oont, opossum, otter, ounce, ox, pachyderm, pack horse, pack rat, painter, panda, pangolin, panther, peccary, peludo, phalanger, pig, pine mouse, platypus, pocket gopher, pocket mouse, pocket rat, polar bear, polar fox, polecat, porcupine, possum, pouched rat, poyou, prairie dog, prairie wolf, pronghorn, puma, rabbit, raccoon, rat, red deer, red squirrel, reindeer, rhino, rhinoceros, river horse, roe, roe deer, roebuck, sable, serval, sheep, shrew, shrew mole, sika, silver fox, skunk, sledge dog, sloth, snowshoe rabbit, springbok, squirrel, stoat, sumpter, sumpter horse, sumpter mule, suslik, swamp rabbit, swine, takin, tamandua, tamarin, tapir, tarpan, tatou, tatou peba, tatouay, tiger, tiger cat, timber wolf, tree shrew, urus, vole, wallaby, warthog, water buffalo, waterbuck, weasel, whale, wharf rat, whistler, white fox, wild ass, wild boar, wild goat, wild ox, wildcat, wildebeest, wolf, wolverine, wombat, wood rat, woodchuck, woolly mammoth, yak, zebra, zebu, zoril