tapir

Definition

An odd-toed ungulate of the genus Tapirus with a long prehensile upper lip.

Etymology

Borrowed from French tapir, from Old Tupi tapi'ira.

Example Sentences

• "Once a dark, clumsy tapir stared at us from a gap in the bushes, and then lumbered away through the forest; once, too, the yellow, sinuous form of a great puma whisked amid the brushwood, and its green, baleful eyes glared hatred at us over its tawny shoulder."