SKIP TO CONTENT

animal

Definitions of animal
  1. noun
    a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
    synonyms: créature, être
    see moresee less
    types:
    animal domestique
    an animal trained for and used for heavy labor
    animal domestique
    any of various animals that have been tamed and made fit for a human environment
    animal de compagnie, animal familier
    a domesticated animal kept for companionship or amusement
    femelle
    an animal that produces gametes (ova) that can be fertilized by male gametes (spermatozoa)
    mâle
    an animal that produces gametes (spermatozoa) that can fertilize female gametes (ova)
    adulte
    any mature animal
    petit
    any immature animal
    pur-sang
    a pedigreed animal of unmixed lineage; used especially of horses
    survivant
    an animal that survives in spite of adversity
    mutant
    an animal that has undergone mutation
    herbivore
    any animal that feeds chiefly on grass and other plants
    cordé
    any animal of the phylum Chordata having a notochord or spinal column
    invertébré
    any animal lacking a backbone or notochord; the term is not used as a scientific classification
    prédateur
    any animal that lives by preying on other animals
    proie
    animal hunted or caught for food
    gibier
    animal hunted for food or sport
    larve
    the immature free-living form of most invertebrates and amphibians and fish which at hatching from the egg is fundamentally unlike its parent and must metamorphose
    animal fictif
    animals that exist only in fiction (usually in children's stories)
    bête de charge, bête de somme
    an animal such as a donkey or ox or elephant used for transporting loads or doing other heavy work
    bête de trait
    an animal used for pulling heavy loads
    poule
    female of certain aquatic animals e.g. octopus or lobster
    jeune mammifère
    any immature mammal
    mère
    female parent of an animal especially domestic livestock
    vertebré
    animals having a bony or cartilaginous skeleton with a segmented spinal column and a large brain enclosed in a skull or cranium
    jeune oiseau
    a bird that is still young
    arthropode
    invertebrate having jointed limbs and a segmented body with an exoskeleton made of chitin
    éponge
    primitive multicellular marine animal whose porous body is supported by a fibrous skeletal framework; usually occurs in sessile colonies
    cnidaires
    radially symmetrical animals having saclike bodies with only one opening and tentacles with stinging structures; they occur in polyp and medusa forms
    cténophore
    biradially symmetrical hermaphroditic solitary marine animals resembling jellyfishes having for locomotion eight rows of cilia arranged like teeth in a comb
    asticot, ver
    any of numerous relatively small elongated soft-bodied animals especially of the phyla Annelida and Chaetognatha and Nematoda and Nemertea and Platyhelminthes; also many insect larvae
    coquillage, mollusque
    invertebrate having a soft unsegmented body usually enclosed in a shell
    chien, chien domestique
    a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
    lévrier
    a tall slender dog of an ancient breed noted for swiftness and keen sight; used as a racing dog
    chat domestique
    any domesticated member of the genus Felis
    grands fauves, gros gibier
    large animals that are hunted for sport
    gibier à plumes
    any bird (as grouse or pheasant) that is hunted for sport
    chenille
    a wormlike and often brightly colored and hairy or spiny larva of a butterfly or moth
    asticot, larve
    a soft thick wormlike larva of certain beetles and other insects
    échinodermes
    marine invertebrates with tube feet and five-part radially symmetrical bodies
    pouliche
    a young female horse under the age of four
    poulain
    a young male horse under the age of four
    cheval mâle
    the male of species Equus caballus
    jeune poisson
    a fish that is young
    type of:
    forme de vie, organisme, vie, être
    a living thing that has (or can develop) the ability to act or function independently
Cite this entry
Style:
MLA
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago

Copy citation
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘animal'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
Word Family