Felis

[ fee-lis ]

noun

1. a genus of mostly small cats, including the domestic cat, margay, puma, and ocelot, sharing with certain cats of related genera an inability to roar due to ossification of the hyoid bone in the larynx.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Felis¹

< New Latin (Linnaeus); Latin fēlis, fēlēs any of several small carnivores, including the wild cat

Example Sentences

But first, they were wild, most likely descended from Felis lybica, the African wildcat.

From Salon

Today, we mourn publicly when even one Felis concolor is killed by human hands or, as happens far more often, by tires.

From Los Angeles Times

“A cat is not a cat is not a cat. A lot of smaller species of cats are the genus Felis. A lot of the big cats are the genus Panthera,” he says.

From Washington Post

Giant Food spokeswoman Felis Andrade said that when the retailer booked the clinic with the community weeks earlier, only the Pfizer-BioNTech booster was approved, which the pharmacy agreed to provide.

From Washington Post

Giant Food spokeswoman Felis Andrade said when the retailer booked the clinic with the community weeks earlier, only the Pfizer booster was approved, which the pharmacy agreed to provide.

From Seattle Times