antelope
antelope Lexical Profile
antelope Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A swift-running, hoofed ruminant mammal of the family Bovidae, typically characterized by slender legs and unbranched, upward-pointing horns, native primarily to the grasslands and savannas of Africa and Asia.
"A massive herd of antelope migrated across the Serengeti, closely shadowed by hungry predators."
The soft leather or hide made from an antelope.
"The vintage armchair was deeply upholstered in rich, brown antelope."
Word Nuance & Usage
In North America, the term is commonly applied to the pronghorn, which physically resembles an antelope but belongs to an entirely different taxonomic family (Antilocapridae) than the true antelopes (Bovidae) native to Africa and Asia. Additionally, the plural can be either 'antelopes' or the uninflected 'antelope' when referring to them collectively.
Word Origin & Etymology
From Middle English 'antelope', via Old French 'antelop' and Medieval Latin 'anthalopus', ultimately from Byzantine Greek 'antholops', a word that originally described a mythical beast with saw-like horns before being applied to actual animals.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.