animal
/ˈænəməl/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.81 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
3
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A multicellular organism of the kingdom Animalia that is usually mobile, with cells that are not encased in a rigid cell wall (distinguishing them from plants and fungi) and derives energy solely from the consumption of other organisms.
noun
A higher animal; an animal related to humans.
noun
A higher animal; an animal related to humans.
noun
A higher animal; an animal related to humans.
Example Sentences
- "Near-synonym: critter"
- "Humans, like other animals, need air to breathe and food to eat."
- "It cannot be denied it [the chameleon] is (if not the moſt of any) a very abſtemious animall, and ſuch as by reaſon of its frigidity, paucity of bloud, and latitancy in the winter (about which time the obſervations are often made) will long ſubſist without a viſible ſuſtentation."
- "When he's hungry my toddler opens his mouth like an animal instead of asking us to feed him."
- "Ancient nomads, wishing to ward off the evening chill and enjoy a meal around a campfire, had to collect wood and then spend time and effort coaxing the heat of friction out from between sticks to kindle a flame. With more settled people, animals were harnessed to capstans or caged in treadmills to turn grist into meal."
- "I spent my summer studying the animals and birds of the two islands."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂enh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *h₂enh₁mos Proto-Italic *anamos Latin animus Latin anima Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin animālisnom. Latin animalder. Old French animalbor. Middle English animal English animal From Middle English animal, from Old French animal, from Latin animal, a nominal use of the adjective form animāle, neuter of animālis, from anima (“breath, spirit”). Displaced native English deer (outside puristic usage) in the general animal sense, from Middle English der, deor (“animal”), from Old English dēor, related to German Tier (“animal”), Dutch dier, Danish dyr, Swedish djur etc. Displaced also rother (“horned animal, esp. ox”, now obsolete), from Middle English rother, reother (“a bovine”), from Old English hrīþer, hrȳþer.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *h₂enh₁-, animal, animālis
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈænəməl/
- British English: /ˈænɪməl/