ANTEATER

echidna, spiny anteater, anteater

(noun) a burrowing monotreme mammal covered with spines and having a long snout and claws for hunting ants and termites; native to Australia

echidna, spiny anteater, anteater

(noun) a burrowing monotreme mammal covered with spines and having a long snout and claws for hunting ants and termites; native to New Guinea

numbat, banded anteater, anteater, Myrmecobius fasciatus

(noun) small Australian marsupial having long snout and strong claws for feeding on termites; nearly extinct

aardvark, ant bear, anteater, Orycteropus afer

(noun) nocturnal burrowing mammal of the grasslands of Africa that feeds on termites; sole extant representative of the order Tubulidentata

anteater, New World anteater

(noun) any of several tropical American mammals of the family Myrmecophagidae which lack teeth and feed on ants and termites

pangolin, scaly anteater, anteater

(noun) toothless mammal of southern Africa and Asia having a body covered with horny scales and a long snout for feeding on ants and termites

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

anteater (plural anteaters)

Any of several animals, in suborder Vermilingua, which are noted for eating ants and termites which they catch with their long sticky tongues.

Any of some other unrelated species that feed with ants, including pangolin (scaly anteater), echidna (spiny anteater), aardvark and numbat (banded anteater).

Source: Wiktionary


Ant"-eat`er, n. (Zoöl.)

Definition: One of several species of edentates and monotremes that feed upon ants. See Ant-bear, Pangolin, Aard-vark, and Echidna.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

25 May 2025

ALBUTEROL

(noun) a bronchodilator (trade names Ventolin or Proventil) used for asthma and emphysema and other lung conditions; available in oral or inhalant forms; side effects are tachycardia and shakiness


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Coffee Trivia

In the 16th century, Turkish women could divorce their husbands if the man failed to keep his family’s pot filled with coffee.

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