argali

American  

[ahr-guh-lee] / ˈɑr gə li /

noun

plural

argali

1. a wild sheep, Ovis ammon, of Asia, having long, curved horns that typically form an open, outwardly extended spiral: rare or endangered.

---

argali British  

/ ˈɑːɡəlɪ /

noun

1. a wild sheep, Ovis ammon, inhabiting semidesert regions in central Asia: family Bovidae, order Artiodactyla. It is the largest of the sheep, having massive horns in the male, which may almost form a circle

---

Etymology

Origin of argali

First recorded in 1770–80; from Mongolian: “female mountain sheep”

Example Sentences

Between 2013 and 2021, with at least five co-conspirators, Schubarth imported “parts of” Kyrgyzstan’s large, endangered Marco Polo argali sheep to the U.S., which he then sent to labs to create 165 cloned embryos.

From Slate • Mar. 16, 2024

In January 2013, a Montana livestock worker returned to the United States from Kyrgyzstan hiding tissue from a Marco Polo argali sheep, one of the largest in the world, federal prosecutors said.

From New York Times • Mar. 14, 2024

Although people in the region have long been classified as herders, Taylor’s team discovered an icy killing ground of argali sheep, along with the spears and arrows used to slay them.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 2, 2021

Nine stuffed animal heads -- argali sheep, wild boar, antelope, brown bear -- grace one wall in the foyer.

From Washington Post • Sep. 22, 2010

For its Hall of Asiatic Life, the American Museum of Natural History needed a group of argali.

From Across Mongolian Plains A Naturalist's Account of China's 'Great Northwest' by Andrews, Roy Chapman