Illustration of elephant
- 1 African
- 2 Asian
elephant
noun
el·e·phant
ˈe-lə-fənt
plural elephants also elephant
often attributive
1
a
: a thickset, usually extremely large, nearly hairless, herbivorous mammal (family Elephantidae, the elephant family) that has a snout elongated into a muscular trunk and two incisors in the upper jaw developed especially in the male into long ivory tusks:
(1)
: a tall, large-eared mammal (Loxodonta africana) of tropical Africa that is sometimes considered to comprise two separate species (L. africana of sub-Saharan savannas and L. cyclotis of central and western rainforests)
called also African elephant
(2)
: a relatively small-eared mammal (Elephas maximus) of forests of southeastern Asia
called also Asian elephant, Indian elephant
2
: one that is uncommonly large or hard to manage see also elephant in the room
Cite this Entry
“Elephant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/elephant. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.
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