baboon

/bæˈbun/

/bəˈbun/

Other forms: baboons

A baboon is a type of African monkey. Baboons have long snouts that resemble dogs' muzzles.

Baboons have thick fur, short tails, and prominent noses. They are ground-dwelling monkeys, and in the wild they form complex families and groups with higher- and lower-ranking members. If you visit a zoo with a primate area, you'll probably see baboons. The Old French word for baboon is baboin, or "ape," which might come from baboue, "muzzle" or "grimace."

Definitions of baboon

1. noun

   large terrestrial monkeys having doglike muzzles
   types:

   Papio ursinus, chacma, chacma baboon

   greyish baboon of southern and eastern Africa

   Mandrillus sphinx, mandrill

   baboon of west Africa with a bright red and blue muzzle and blue hindquarters

   Mandrillus leucophaeus, drill

   similar to the mandrill but smaller and less brightly colored

   type of:

   Old World monkey, catarrhine

   of Africa or Arabia or Asia; having nonprehensile tails and nostrils close together