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giraffe


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Definition of giraffe

noun (plural same or giraffes)

  • a large African mammal with a very long neck and forelegs, having a coat patterned with brown patches separated by lighter lines. It is the tallest living animal.
    • Giraffa camelopardalis, family Giraffidae

Origin:

late 16th century: from French girafe, Italian giraffa, or Spanish and Portuguese girafa, based on Arabic zarāfa. The animal was known in Europe in the medieval period, and isolated instances of names for it based on the Arabic are recorded in Middle English, when it was commonly called the camelopard

Spelling help

Remember that giraffe is spelled with one r and a double f.

Spelling tip

a giraffe reaching for fruit.

giraffe in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of giraffe in the US English dictionary