quadruped
Americanadjective
noun
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
- quadrupedal adjective
- quadrupedism noun
Etymology
Origin of quadruped
1640–50; < Latin quadruped- (stem of quadrupēs ), equivalent to quadru- quadru- + -ped- -ped
Compare meaning
How does quadruped compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A squirrel, a zebra, a deer, a wolf, and a grizzly bear meet in a field. Yes, a disaster in the making, but also a bunch of quadrupeds — animals that walk on four feet. Cut quadruped in half and it makes sense: quadru means four, like when a woman births four babies they are called quadruplets. And –ped is for the feet: think of centipedes and millipedes, insects that have so many feet it’s disturbing. A human is a biped because they walk on two feet. If you meet a human with four feet, you could call him a quadruped. You could also call the circus and let them know their quadruped is loose.
Vocabulary lists containing quadruped
40 SAT words Beginning with "Q"
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Body Language: Ped, Pod ("Foot")
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"Ode to the Table" by Pablo Neruda
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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.
Nomura expects Ubtech Robotics, Unitree and other Chinese robotic companies to produce a total of 110,000 to 200,000 humanoid and quadruped robots next year.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 8, 2025
They discovered that the length of the rods between the puppeteer and the puppet resulted in small, unpredictable variations in the way the fictional quadruped moved.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2025
"It is very curious thus having a quadruped peculiar to so small a tract of country."
From Salon • Jun. 19, 2024
To test this hypothesis, they used DRL to train a quadruped robot to cross various terrains.
From Science Daily • Apr. 30, 2024
This god, as you may probably know, is represented by almost every kind of animal, biped and quadruped, into which during the lapse of centuries his soul is supposed to have passed.
From The War Tiger Or, Adventures and Wonderful Fortunes of the Young Sea Chief and His Lad Chow: A Tale of the Conquest of China by Dalton, William
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
