dugong

[ doo-gong, -gawng ]

noun

1. an herbivorous, aquatic mammal, Dugong dugon, of the Red Sea and Indian Ocean, having a barrel-shaped body, flipperlike forelimbs, no hind limbs, and a triangular tail: widespread but rare.

dugong

/ ˈduːɡɒŋ /

noun

1. a whalelike sirenian mammal, Dugong dugon, occurring in shallow tropical waters from E Africa to Australia: family Dugongidae

Word History and Origins

Origin of dugong¹

1790–1800; < New Latin < German: first recorded as dugung, apparently misrepresentation of Malay duyung, or a cognate Austronesian word

Word History and Origins

Origin of dugong¹

C19: from Malay duyong

Example Sentences

Almost every day at COP28, this year’s annual United Nations climate summit, an activist dons a costume of a dugong — a manatee-like creature that forages for seagrass in warm, shallow areas of the Indian and Pacific oceans.

From Seattle Times

A woman dressed as a dugong, a rare marine mammal, beseeched passers-by to end the burning of fossil fuels.

From New York Times

For Alice McGown, a Los Angeles-based activist, the right to protest at COP meant dressing as a dugong, or seacow, holding a sign saying: “No More Fossils.”

From Washington Times

But while looking cartoonish, McGown offered serious criticism of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Co.’s plans to expand its offshore ultrasour gas operations into a protected area home to the dugong.

From Washington Times

For Alice McGown, a Los Angeles-based activist, that meant dressing in a dugong outfit, holding a sign saying: “No More Fossils.”

From Seattle Times