walrus

[ wawl-ruhs, wol- ]

noun

, plural wal·rus·es, (especially collectively) wal·rus.

1. a large marine mammal, Odobenus nosmarus, of Arctic seas, related to the seals, and having flippers, a pair of large tusks, and a tough, wrinkled skin.

walrus

/ ˈwɔːlrəs; ˈwɒl- /

noun

1. a pinniped mammal, Odobenus rosmarus, of northern seas, having a tough thick skin, upper canine teeth enlarged as tusks, and coarse whiskers and feeding mainly on shellfish: family Odobenidae

Word History and Origins

Origin of walrus¹

First recorded in 1645–55; from Dutch: literally, “whale horse”; cognate with German Walross, Danish hvalros; compare Old English horshwæl “horse-whale”

Word History and Origins

Origin of walrus¹

C17: probably from Dutch, from Scandinavian; compare Old Norse hrosshvalr (literally: horse whale) and Old English horschwæl; see horse , whale

Example Sentences

I’m Ben Mathis-Lilley, filling in for Jim Newell, who has been deployed to far-northern Norway to investigate Russian sabotage attacks and is currently attempting to attach a surveillance device to a walrus.

From Slate

Supposedly playing hooky from filming a movie, he visits the walrus diorama at the Natural History Museum.

From Los Angeles Times

Broderick contemplates the walrus while the walrus watches him, evoking one of Bueller’s most-quoted pronouncements:

From Los Angeles Times

MyPillow huckster Mike Lindell, freshly shorn of his walrus mustache, tried to debate a 12-year-old .

From Salon

As reported by paleontologists led by the University of Tsukuba's Dr. Mathieu Boisville in the journal PeerJ Life & Environment, fossils of the primordial pinniped were initially believed to be a different extinct walrus predecessor, Ontocetus emmonsi, after being discovered both in Antwerp, Belgium and Norwich in the United Kingdom.

From Salon