tiger

American  

[tahy-ger] / ˈtaɪ gər /

noun

plural

tigers, tiger

1. a large, carnivorous, tawny-colored and black-striped feline, Panthera tigris, of Asia, ranging in several subspecies from India and the Malay Peninsula to Siberia: the entire species is endangered, with some subspecies thought to be extinct.

2. the cougar, jaguar, thylacine, or other animal resembling the tiger.

3. a person resembling a tiger in fierceness, courage, etc.

4. a country that is considered to have a tiger economy.

   Taiwan is one of the four Asian tigers.

5. an additional cheer (often the wordtiger ) at the end of a round of cheering.

6. any of several strong, voracious fishes, as a sand shark.

7. any of numerous animals with stripes similar to a tiger's.

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adjective

1. noting or relating to a strict parenting style that demands academic excellence and obedience from children, associated especially with East Asians.

   a tiger mom; tiger parenting.

tiger ¹ British  

/ ˈtaɪɡə /

noun

1. a large feline mammal, Panthera tigris, of forests in most of Asia, having a tawny yellow coat with black stripes

2. (not in technical use) any of various other animals, such as the jaguar, leopard, and thylacine

3. a dynamic, forceful, or cruel person

4. 1. a country, esp in E Asia, that is achieving rapid economic growth

   2. ( as modifier )

      a tiger economy

5. archaic a servant in livery, esp a page or groom

6. short for tiger moth

7. slang a ten-rand note

8. informal to find oneself in a situation that has turned out to be much more difficult to control than one had expected

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Tiger ² British  

/ ˈtaɪɡə /

noun

1. See TIGR

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Other Word Forms

• tiger-like adjective
• tigerish adjective
• tigerishly adverb
• tigerishness noun
• tigerlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of tiger

before 1000; Middle English tigre, Old English tīgras (plural) < Latin tīgris, tigris < Greek tígris

Example Sentences

In Similipal Tiger Reserve, a tiger with rare and unusually wide dark stripes, known as T12, moves through the forest like a shadow.

From BBC

From government ministers to village chiefs, no-one has been spared in Xi's campaign against "tigers and flies" - that is, both high-ranking elites and grassroots officials.

From BBC

Anderson asked him if would play a karate instructor and sent him a photo of a tiger... in a martial arts kimono.

From Barron's

That pressure may help create dramatic surface features such as the long fractures known as the "tiger stripes" on Enceladus.

From Science Daily

Emojis, Disney characters, cigarettes and more pile up in humorous scenes that include a saber-toothed tiger driving a dune buggy and a pair of corvids fighting over a worm.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cougar
• cub
• leopard
• lynx