echidna

American

[ih-kid-nuh] / ɪˈkɪd nə /

noun

Also called spiny anteater. any of several insectivorous monotremes of the genera Tachyglossus, of Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea, and Zaglossus, of New Guinea, that have claws and a slender snout and are covered with coarse hair and long spines.

echidna British

/ ɪˈkɪdnə /

noun

Also called: spiny anteater. any of the spine-covered monotreme mammals of the genera Tachyglossus of Australia and Zaglossus of New Guinea: family Tachyglossidae. They have a long snout and claws for hunting ants and termites

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of echidna

< New Latin (1798), originally a genus name; Latin: serpent, Echidna a mythical creature which gave birth to the Hydra and other monsters < Greek échidna, akin to échis viper

Vocabulary lists containing echidna

Australia and New Zealand - Introductory

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Australia and New Zealand - Middle School and High School

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“I managed to only get one picture, but you can see the outline of the echidna in the water.”

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2024

Officially named Opalios splendens, the new species has been nicknamed for its resemblance to the platypus and echidna - which are the only egg-laying mammals in the world today.

From BBC • May 27, 2024

Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna, named for British naturalist and documentarian David Attenborough, was discovered in 1961.

From Washington Times • Nov. 10, 2023

This echidna species is so special because it is one of only five remaining species of monotremes, the sole guardians of this remarkable branch of the tree of life.

From Science Daily • Nov. 9, 2023

Where better for an echidna than in the bath?

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023