animal

• (UK, US) enPR: ăn'ĭməl, IPA^(key): /ˈænɪməl/

• Audio (US)

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Picture dictionary
animal
organism organism
mammal mammal fish fish amphibian amphibian reptile reptile bird bird insect insect

From Middle English animal, from Old French animal, from Latin animal, a nominal use of an adjective from animale, neuter of animālis, from anima (“breath, spirit”). Displaced native Middle English deor, der (“animal”) (from Old English dēor (“animal”)), Middle English reother (“animal, neat”) (from Old English hrīþer, hrȳþer (“neat, ox”)).

animal (plural animals)

1. (sciences) A eukaryote of the clade Animalia; a multicellular organism that is usually mobile, whose cells are not encased in a rigid cell wall (distinguishing it from plants and fungi) and which derives energy solely from the consumption of other organisms (distinguishing it from plants).

   A cat is an animal, not a plant. Humans are also animals, under the scientific definition, as we are not plants.

   Synonyms: beast, creature

   • 1650, Thomas Browne, “Of the Cameleon”, in Pseudodoxia Epidemica: […], 2nd edition, London: […] A[braham] Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, […], →OCLC, 3rd book, page 133:

     It cannot be denied it [the chameleon] is (if not the moſt of any) a very abſtemious animall, and ſuch as by reaſon of its frigidity, paucity of bloud, and latitancy in the winter (about which time the obſervations are often made) will long ſubſist without a viſible ſuſtentation.

2. (loosely) Any member of the kingdom Animalia other than a human.

   Synonym: beast

3. (loosely, colloquial) Any land-living vertebrate (i.e. not fishes, insects, etc.).
   • 2013 July-August, Henry Petroski, “Geothermal Energy”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 4:

     Ancient nomads, wishing to ward off the evening chill and enjoy a meal around a campfire, had to collect wood and then spend time and effort coaxing the heat of friction out from between sticks to kindle a flame. With more settled people, animals were harnessed to capstans or caged in treadmills to turn grist into meal.

4. (figuratively) A person who behaves wildly; a bestial, brutal, brutish, cruel, or inhuman person.

   My students are animals.

   • 2019, Finneas O'Connell and Billie Eilish O'Connell (lyrics), “Bad Guy”, performed by Billie Eilish:

     Own me, I'll let you play the role
     I'll be your animal

   Synonyms: brute, monster, savage

5. (informal) A person of a particular type.

   He's a political animal.

6. Matter, thing.

   a whole different animal

• See also Thesaurus:animal

• animalist

From Latin animālis, from either anima (“breath, spirit”) or animus. Originally distinct from the noun, it became associated with attributive use of the noun and is now indistinguishable from it.

animal (not comparable)

1. Of or relating to animals.

   animal instincts

   Synonyms: beastly, bestial

2. Raw, base, unhindered by social codes.

   animal passions

   Synonyms: animalistic, beastly, bestial, untamed, wild

3. Pertaining to the spirit or soul; relating to sensation or innervation.
   • 2003, Roy Porter, Flesh in the Age of Reason, Penguin, published 2004, page 47:

     To explain what activated the flesh, ‘animal spirits’ were posited, superfine fluids which shuttled between the mind and the vitals, conveying messages and motion.

4. (slang, Ireland) Excellent

• Wiktionary appendix of terms relating to animals

• animal at OneLook Dictionary Search
• animal in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
• “animal”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• animal in Britannica Dictionary
• animal in Ozdic collocation dictionary
• animal in WordReference English Collocations

• Alamin, Almain, Malian, Manila, Milana, al-Amin, almain, aminal, lamina, maalin, manila

Borrowed from Latin animal.

animal (epicene, plural animales)

1. animal

animal m (plural animales)

1. animal

Borrowed from Latin animal.

• (Balearic, Central) IPA^(key): /ə.niˈmal/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /a.niˈmal/

• Audio (Valencian)

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• Rhymes: -al

animal (masculine and feminine plural animals)

1. animal

animal m (plural animals)

1. animal

• animalada
• animalitzar (“to animalize”)

• “animal” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “animal”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
• “animal” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “animal” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Borrowed from Spanish animal, from Latin animal, a nominal use of an adjective from animale, neuter of animālis, from anima (“breath, spirit”).

• Hyphenation: a‧ni‧mal
• IPA^(key): /ʔaniˈmal/, [ʔʌ.n̪ɪˈmal̪]

animál

1. animal
2. (derogatory) a contemptible person
3. (sometimes humurous) a crazy person

animál

1. (sometimes humorous) crazy
2. contemptible, deserving contempt
3. ruthless; without pity or compassion; cruel, pitiless

animál

1. (vulgar) used as an expression of disgust, anger, etc.

Borrowed from Latin animal. Compare the archaic inherited doublet aumaille and its variant armaille, both from the Latin neuter plural animālia.

• IPA^(key): /a.ni.mal/

• (un animal)

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• Audio

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• Homophones: animale, animales

animal m (plural animaux)

1. animal

   Synonyms: bête, bestiole

animal (feminine animale, masculine plural animaux, feminine plural animales)

1. animal

   Synonym: bestial

   Antonym: végétal

• “animal”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

• lamina

Borrowed from Latin animal.

animal m or f (plural animais)

1. animal

animal m (plural animais)

1. animal

From French animal, from Latin animal.

animal

1. animal

   Synonym: zannimo

Borrowed from Spanish animal.

• Hyphenation: a‧ni‧mal
• IPA^(key): /ʔaniˈmal/, [ʔɐ.niˈmal]

animál

1. animal

   Synonym: ayup

• IPA^(key): /a.niˈmal/

animal (plural animales)

1. animal

From Portuguese animal.

animal

1. beast
2. animal

From animāle, nominative neuter singular of animālis.

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈa.ni.mal/, [ˈänɪmäɫ̪]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈa.ni.mal/, [ˈäːnimäl]

animal n (genitive animālis); third declension

1. animal
2. living creature

Third-declension noun (neuter, “pure” i-stem).

• bestia

• “animal”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “animal”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• animal in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• animal in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎, London: Macmillan and Co.
  • animate and inanimate nature: animata (animalia) inanimaque (not inanimata)
    
  • domestic animals: animalia quae nobiscum degunt (Plin. 8. 40)
    

• IPA^(key): /aniˈmaːl/, /aˈnimal/

Borrowed from Old French animal, from Latin animal.

• animale

animal (plural animales)

1. An animal (considered to include humans)

• English: animal
• Scots: ainimal

• “animāl, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-01-16.

Borrowed from Latin animālis.

• animale, animall, anymal, anymall

animal

1. Related to the soul or spirit of a living being (i.e. sentience or sapience)

• English: animal

• “animāl, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-01-16.

animal m (plural animaux or animaulx)

1. animal

   Synonym: beste

From Portuguese animal and Spanish animal.

animal

1. beast
2. animal

Borrowed from Latin animal. Doublet of alimária.

• Rhymes: (Portugal) -al, (Brazil) -aw
• Hyphenation: a‧ni‧mal

animal m or f (plural animais, comparable, comparative mais animal, superlative o mais animal or animalíssimo)

1. (biology) animal (relating to animals)
   • 2000, Julio S. Inglez de Sousa et al., Enciclopédia agrícola brasileira: E-H, Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, page 225:

     Em anatomia animal o termo é de uso muito comum, […]

     The term is very commonly used in animal anatomy, […]

2. (derogatory, of a person) brute (senseless, unreasoning)
3. (Brazil, colloquial) cool; awesome
   • 2015, Juliana Rosenthal K., Save the Day, Buqui, page 52:

     É, tava animal mesmo — Bia mal consegue falar.

     Yeah, it really was wild — Bia can barely speak.

For quotations using this term, see Citations:animal.

animal m (plural animais)

1. (biology) animal (any member of the kingdom Animalia)
   • 2020, Petrônio Braz, Léxico dos Gerais, Chiado Books, page 481:

     Primatas — Animais mamíferos, da ordem Primata, que compreende os macacos, antropóides e o homem.

     Primates — Mammalian animals, of the order Primata, which comprises monkeys/apes, anthropoids and man.

2. (non-scientific usage) animal (an animal other than a human, especially a vertebrate)
   • Daniela Ikawa, Valor humano intrínseco e redistribuição social in 2007, Flávia Piovesan, Daniela Ikawa, Direitos Humanos: Fundamento, Proteção e Implementação, volume 2, Juruá Editora, page 44:

     Separar os dois grupos — humanos e animais requereria, dentro dos limites da teoria relativa à dor e ao sofrimento, […]

     Separating the twe groups — humans and animals would require, within the limits of the theory relating to pain and suffering, […]

   Synonyms: besta, bicho

3. (colloquial) twat; idiot; moron
   • 1979, Wilson Bacelar de Oliveira, Os meus fantasmas, Editora Comunicação, page 490:

     Escute aqui, seu animal, então você brigou com o companheiro?

     Listen up, you dumbass, so you fought with [your] mate?

   Synonyms: idiota, retardado, burro, imbecil, débil mental, besta

4. (colloquial) beast (a cruel person)
   • 2007, Creso Balduíno, O verso do ser, Editora Revan, page 170:

     Josuel é um animal repulsivo, uma besta humana.

     Josuel is a repulsive beast, a human beast.

   Synonym: monstro

For quotations using this term, see Citations:animal.

• animal de estimação
• animalizar
• animalzão (augmentative)
• animalzinho (diminutive)

Borrowed from French animal, from Latin animal. Doublet of nămaie.

• IPA^(key): /a.niˈmal/

animal m or n (feminine singular animală, masculine plural animali, feminine and neuter plural animale)

1. animal, animalistic
2. brutal

animal

1. brutally

animal n (plural animale)

1. animal

Borrowed from Latin animal.

animal m (plural animals)

1. (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan, Sutsilvan, Surmiran, Vallader) animal

• (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan, Surmiran) biestg
• (Rumantsch Grischun, Sutsilvan) bestga
• (Sursilvan) tier, bestia
• (Puter, Vallader) bes-cha

Borrowed from Latin animal. See also alimaña, an inherited doublet.

• IPA^(key): /aniˈmal/ [a.niˈmal]

• Audio (Spain)

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• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: a‧ni‧mal

animal (plural animales)

1. animal

animal m (plural animales)

1. animal

• “animal”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

• lámina
• lamina

Borrowed from Spanish animal.

• Hyphenation: a‧ni‧mal
• IPA^(key): /ʔaniˈmal/, [ʔɐ.nɪˈmal]

animál

1. beast; brute; creature

   Synonyms: halimaw, hayop

2. (derogatory) brutish person; inhuman person

   Synonyms: hayop, bruto, bestiya

From English animal.

animal

1. animal (members of Kingdom Animalia that are not humans)
   • 1989, Buk Baibel long Tok Pisin, Port Moresby: Bible Society of Papua New Guinea, Jenesis 1:25:

     God i kamapim ol kain kain animal bilong ples na ol bikpela na liklik animal bilong bus. God i lukim olgeta dispela samting i gutpela, na em i amamas.

     →New International Version translation

   Synonym: abus