hippopotamus
UK /ˌhɪp.əˈpɒt.ə.məs/ · US /ˌhɪp.əˈpɑ.tə.məs/ noun
Forms hippopotami hippopotamuses hippopotamos hippotamus
- noun A semi-aquatic, herbivorous, African hoofed mammal of the family Hippopotamidae.
- noun The common hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius).
Synonyms
hippo hippopotamid river horse Hippopotamus amphibius
Etymology
From Latin and New Latin hippopotamus, from Ancient Greek ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos), from ἵππος (híppos, “horse”) (English hippo-) + ποταμός (potamós, “river”). First attested in the 1560s.
Displaced displaced English nicker (from native Old English nicor) and river horse.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A large, amphibious, herbivorous mammal (Hippopotamus amphibius), common in the rivers of Africa. It is allied to the hogs, and has a very thick, naked skin, a thick and square head, a very large muzzle, small eyes and ears, thick and heavy body, and short legs. It is supposed to be the behemoth of the Bible. Called also zeekoe, and river horse. A smaller species (H. Liberiencis) inhabits Western Africa.
Etymology [L., from Gr.Equine.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “hippopotamus”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details