Definitions for: Elephant


[n] five-toed pachyderm
[n] the symbol of the Republican Party; introduced in cartoons by Thomas Nast in 1874



Webster (1913) Definition: El"e*phant, n. [OE. elefaunt, olifant, OF. olifant,
F. ['e]l['e]phant, L. elephantus, elephas, -antis, fr. Gr. ?,
?; of unknown origin; perh. fr. Skr. ibha, with the Semitic
article al, el, prefixed, or fr. Semitic Aleph hindi Indian
bull; or cf. Goth. ulbandus camel, AS. olfend.]
1. (Zo["o]l.) A mammal of the order Proboscidia, of which two
living species, Elephas Indicus and E. Africanus, and
several fossil species, are known. They have a proboscis
or trunk, and two large ivory tusks proceeding from the
extremity of the upper jaw, and curving upwards. The molar
teeth are large and have transverse folds. Elephants are
the largest land animals now existing.

2. Ivory; the tusk of the elephant. [Obs.] --Dryden.



Elephant apple (Bot.), an East Indian fruit with a rough,
hard rind, and edible pulp, borne by Feronia elephantum,
a large tree related to the orange.

Elephant bed (Geol.), at Brighton, England, abounding in
fossil remains of elephants. --Mantell.

Elephant beetle (Zo["o]l.), any very large beetle of the
genus Goliathus (esp. G. giganteus), of the family
Scarab[ae]id[ae]. They inhabit West Africa.

Elephant fish (Zo["o]l.), a chim[ae]roid fish
(Callorhynchus antarcticus), with a proboscis-like
projection of the snout.

Elephant paper, paper of large size, 23 [times] 28 inches.


Double elephant paper, paper measuring 263/4 [times] 40
inches. See Note under Paper.

Elephant seal (Zo["o]l.), an African jumping shrew
(Macroscelides typicus), having a long nose like a
proboscis.

Elephant's ear (Bot.), a name given to certain species of
the genus Begonia, which have immense one-sided leaves.

Elephant's foot (Bot.)
(a) A South African plant (Testudinaria Elephantipes),
which has a massive rootstock covered with a kind of
bark cracked with deep fissures; -- called also
tortoise plant. The interior part is barely edible,
whence the plant is also called Hottentot's bread.
(b) A genus (Elephantopus) of coarse, composite weeds.


Elephant's tusk (Zo["o]l.), the tooth shell. See
Dentalium.

See Also: African elephant, allegory, Elephantidae, Elephas maximus, emblem, family Elephantidae, gomphothere, Indian elephant, Loxodonta africana, mammoth, proboscidean, proboscidian, rogue elephant

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