Bactrian camel

American  

noun

1. an Asian camel, Camelus bactrianus, having two humps on the back: an endangered species.

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Bactrian camel British  

noun

1. a two-humped camel, Camelus bactrianus , used as a beast of burden in the cold deserts of central Asia Compare Arabian camel

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Etymology

Origin of Bactrian camel

First recorded in 1600–10

Compare meaning

How does bactrian-camel compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Bactrian camel vs. dromedary

Example Sentences

A two-humped Bactrian camel can weigh more than 2,000 pounds.

From Washington Post • Dec. 17, 2021

Australia also has a much smaller wild population of the two humped Bactrian camel.

From BBC • Jul. 10, 2019

An analysis of blood from zoo animals in the same evolutionary family, including a Bactrian camel and a llama, revealed that all had the same diminutive antibodies.

From Science Magazine • May 10, 2018

If so, the curve for each sex would look less like the cross-section of a bell, and more like that of a Bactrian camel, with two humps instead of one.

From Economist • Feb. 3, 2015

I must have given him a devil’s glare because he raised his hands in surrender and went back to rousing the fainted Bactrian camel.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri