lynx

/lɪŋks/

lynx

English Noun Top 31,134

Definition

Any of several medium-sized wild cats of the genus Lynx.

Etymology

From Middle English lynx, linx, lenx, lynce, from Latin lynx, from Ancient Greek λύγξ (lúnx), from Proto-Hellenic *lúnks, from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“white; light; bright”), because of the cat's glowing eyes and ability to see in the dark. Displaced English los; Middle English lusk (“lynx”), from Old English lox (“lynx”) as the animal died out in Britain during the Middle Ages.