Adjacent Words

Hyena definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

HYE'NA, n. [L. hyaena.] A quadruped of the genus Canis,having small naked ears, four toes on each foot, a straight jointed tail, and erect hair on the neck; an inhabitant of Asiatic Turkey, Syria,Persia and Barbary. It is a solitary animal,and feeds on flesh; it preys on flocks and herds, and will open graves to obtain food. It is a fierce, cruel and untamable animal, and is sometimes called the tiger-wolf.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: doglike nocturnal mammal of Africa and southern Asia that feeds chiefly on carrion [syn: hyena, hyaena]

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural hyenas; also hyena) Etymology: Middle English hyene, from Latin hyaena, from Greek hyaina, from hys hog — more at sow Date: 14th century any of several large strong nocturnal carnivorous Old World mammals (family Hyaenidae) that usually feed as scavengers • hyenic adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (also hyaena) any flesh-eating mammal of the order Hyaenidae, with hind limbs shorter than forelimbs. Phrases and idioms: laughing hyena n. a hyena, Crocuta crocuta, whose howl is compared to a fiendish laugh. Etymology: ME f. OF hyene & L hyaena f. Gk huaina fem. of hus pig

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Hyena Hy*e"na, n.; pl. Hyenas. [L. hyaena, Gr. ?, orig., a sow, but usually, a Libyan wild beast, prob., the hyena, fr. ? hog: cf. F. hy[`e]ne. See Sow female hog.] (Zo["o]l.) Any carnivorous mammal of the family Hy[ae]nid[ae], of which three living species are known. They are large and strong, but cowardly. They feed chiefly on carrion, and are nocturnal in their habits. [Written also hy[ae]na.] Note: The striped hyena (Hy[ae]na striata) inhabits Southern Asia and a large part of Africa. The brown hyena (H. brunnea), and the spotted hyena (Crocuta maculata), are found in Southern Africa. The extinct cave hyena (H. spel[ae]a) inhabited England and France. Cave hyena. See under Cave. Hyena dog (Zo["o]l.), a South African canine animal (Lycaon venaticus), which hunts in packs, chiefly at night. It is smaller than the common wolf, with very large, erect ears, and a bushy tail. Its color is reddish or yellowish brown, blotched with black and white. Called also hunting dog.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(hyenas) A hyena is an animal that looks rather like a dog and makes a sound which is similar to a human laugh. Hyenas live in Africa and Asia. N-COUNT

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

hi-e'-na (tsabhua` (Jer 12:9); Septuagint huaine (Jer 12:9; Ecclesiasticus 13:18); compare Arabic dab` or dabu`, "hyaena"; compare tsebho`im, Zeboim (1Sa 13:18; Ne 11:34); also compare tsibh`on, Zibeon (Ge 36:2,14,20; 1Ch 1:38); but not tsebhoyim, Zeboiim (Ge 10:19; 14:2, etc.)): English Versions of the Bible does not contain the word "hyena," except in Ecclesiasticus 13:18, "What peace is there between the hyena and the dog? and what; peace between the rich man and the poor?" In Jer 12:9, where the Hebrew has ha-`ayiT tsabhua` (the Revised Version (British and American) "a speckled bird of prey"), Septuagint has spelaion huaines, "a hyena's den," as if from a Hebrew original having me`arah, "cave," instead of ha-`ayiT, "bird." The root tsabha` may mean "to seize as prey" (compare Arabic seb`, "lion" or "rapacious animal"), or "to dip" or "to dye" (compare Arabic cabagh, "to dye"), hence, the two translations of tsabhua` as "hyena" and as "speckled" (Vulgate versicolor).

The hyena of Palestine is the striped hyena (Hyaena striata) which ranges from India to North Africa. The striped, the spotted, and the brown hyenas constitute a distinct family of the order of Carnivora, having certain peculiarities of dentition and having four toes on each foot, instead of four behind and five in front, as in most of the order. The hyena is a nocturnal animal, rarely seen though fairly abundant, powerful but cowardly, a feeder on carrion and addicted to grave-robbing. The last habit in particular has won it the abhorrence of the natives of the countries which it inhabits. In the passage cited in Ecclus, it is to be noted that it is to the hyena that the rich man is compared. The jaws and teeth of the hyena are exceedingly strong and fitted for crushing bones which have resisted the efforts of dogs and jackals. Its dens are in desolate places and are littered with fragments of skeletons. "Is my heritage unto me as a speckled bird of prey?" (Jer 12:9) becomes a more striking passage if the Septuagint is followed, "Is my heritage unto me as a hyena's den?"

Shaqq-ud-Diba`, "Cleft of the hyenas," is the name of a valley north of Wadi-ul-Qelt, and Wadi-Abu-Diba` (of similar meaning) is the name of an affluent of Wadi-ul-Qelt. Either of these, or possibly Wadi-ul-Qelt itself, may be the valley of Zeboim (valley of hyenas) of 1Sa 13:18.

The name of Zibeon the Horite (Ge 36:2, etc.) is more doubtfully connected with "hyena."

Alfred Ely Day

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Tiger-wolf.

Moby Thesaurus

African hunting dog, Cape hunting dog, animal, anthropophagite, barbarian, beast, brush wolf, brute, cannibal, coyote, cur, destroyer, dingo, dog, fox, hound, insect, jackal, lobo, man-eater, medicine wolf, mongrel, nihilist, pig, polecat, prairie wolf, reptile, reynard, savage, serpent, shark, skunk, snake, swine, tiger, timber wolf, vandal, varmint, vermin, viper, whelp, wild man, wolf, worm, wrecker