jaguar

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈd͡ʒæɡ.jʊə/, /ˈd͡ʒæɡ.juː.ə/ (UK); /ˈd͡ʒæɡ.wɑɹ/, /ˈd͡ʒæɡ.(j)u.ɑɹ/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Portuguese jaguar,^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from Tupi jaguara,^[3][4][6] a word for a large beast of prey;^[4][5] the AHD and Barnhart also cite Guarani yaguar, yaguará.^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The large spotted cat of Central and South America (1604, or c. 1600 in Etymonline).^[7][3][5][4]

Semantic evolution

Etymonline notes that the Tupi word was said in old sources to denote any large beast of prey.^[4] The name was given to a British make of car from 1935, for which Jag is attested by 1951.^[4]

Timeline

• 1604 – the animal.^[7][3][5]
• 1935 – the make of car.^[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A large cat of Central and South America, related to the leopard, with a yellowish coat spotted with black rosettes.

Related words

• jaguarundi
• cougar
• puma

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press