aardwolf
/ˈɑɹdˌwʊlf/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.11 in modern English
15
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
Example Sentences
- "[page 79] The Committee of Science and Correspondence, having taken into consideration the request of the Council, that they should prepare a Report upon the Animals most desirable to be introduced into this country for the purposes of utility or exhibition, beg leave to submit a List of such Animals arranged under the heads of the respective countries of which they are natives. […] [page 86] Cape of Good Hope. […] Aard Wolf (Proteles)."
- "The size of the aard-wolf is about that of a full-grown fox, which it further resembles in its pointed muzzle; but it stands higher upon its legs, its ears are considerably larger and more naked, and its tail shorter and not so bushy. […] In its habits and manners the aard-wolf resembles the fox: like that animal it is nocturnal, and constructs a subterraneous burrow, at the bottom of which it lies concealed during the day-time and only ventures abroad on the approach of night to search for food and satisfy the other calls of nature."
- "There is a very pretty little hyæna to be found up in these localities, called by the natives "aard-wolf," and by the colonists "strand wolf;" it is about the size of a jackal, possesses a bright fawn-coloured coat, handsomely marked with black lines."
- "I have had the opportunity, however, of examining an example of the Aard Wolf (Proteles cristatus), an animal that is now seldom seen in menageries. So great is the uniformity of pattern amongst the terrestrial carnivores that Proteles may serve as an example of all."
- "Aardwolves scoop out small hollows in the sides of white-ant hills, but do not tear down the mounds in the same manner as Aardvarks. […] Newspaper controversy as to whether or not the Aardwolf habitually attacks sheep and lambs is something of a "hardy annual" in South Africa. […] [I]t would be an error of judgment to advocate the destruction of all Aardwolves in the face of existing evidence of their normally insectivorous diet."
- "Aardwolfs are widespread, though seldom seen. They inhabit open country, from arid scrub to moister, high-altitude grasslands."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁er-der. Proto-Germanic *erþō Proto-West Germanic *erþu Old Dutch ertha Middle Dutch āerde Dutch aarde Afrikaans aarde Proto-Indo-European *wl̥kʷós? Proto-Indo-European *wĺ̥kʷos Proto-Germanic *wulfaz Proto-West Germanic *wulf Old Dutch *wulf Middle Dutch wolf Dutch wolf Afrikaans wolf Afrikaans aardwolfbor. Dutch aardwolfbor. English aardwolf Borrowed from South African Dutch aardwolf (whence Afrikaans aardwolf), from aard- (prefix meaning ‘earth’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁er- (“earth”), probably from the fact that the animal rests in burrows in the ground during the day) + wolf (“wolf”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wĺ̥kʷos (“wolf”)), influenced by English wolf (the second element of aardwolf is pronounced like that word, and one plural form is aardwolves; the Dutch plural form is aardwolven).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *h₁er-, aardwolf, *wĺ̥kʷos
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɑɹdˌwʊlf/
- British English: /ˈɑːdwʊlf/