hippopotamus

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   The common hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius)

   These were the first hippopotami that we had ever seen, and, to judge by their insatiable curiosity, I should judge that we were the first white men that they had ever seen.

2. 2
   noun

   massive thick-skinned herbivorous animal living in or around rivers of tropical Africa

3. 3
   noun

   A semi-aquatic, herbivorous, African hoofed mammal of the family Hippopotamidae.

Simplified etymology

Hippopotamus comes from Greek hippos, “horse,” and potamos, “river,” and therefore literally means “river horse.” Greek hippos and Latin equus developed from the same ancient root.

From Latin and New Latin hippopotamus, from Ancient Greek ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos), from ἵππος (híppos, “horse”) (English hippo-) + ποταμός (potamós, “river”). Displaced nicker, from Old English nicor.

Topics

External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary