zebra
[ zee-bruh; British also zeb-ruh ]
/ ˈzi brə; British also ˈzɛb rə /
noun, plural ze·bras, (especially collectively) ze·bra.
any of several horselike African mammals of the genus Equus, each species having a characteristic pattern of black or dark-brown stripes on a whitish background: all zebra species are threatened or endangered.
Also called zebra butterfly.
a tropical butterfly, Heliconius charithonius, having black wings barred with yellow.
(initial capital letter)
a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter Z.
Football Slang.
an official, who usually wears a black and white striped shirt.
Origin of zebra
1590–1600; 1975–80
for def 4; < Portuguese
zebra, zebro the Iberian wild ass (Spanish
cebra), perhaps < Latin
equiferus (Pliny) kind of wild horse, equivalent to
equi- (combining form of
equus horse) +
ferus wild
OTHER WORDS FROM zebra
ze·bra·like, ze·bra·ic [zi-brey-ik] /zɪˈbreɪ ɪk/, adjectiveWords nearby zebra
zeami,
zeatin,
zebec,
zebedee,
zeboim,
zebra,
zebra body,
zebra crossing,
zebra finch,
zebra label,
zebra mussel
Example sentences from the Web for zebra
British Dictionary definitions for zebra (1 of 2)
zebra
/ (ˈziːbrə, ˈzɛbrə) /
noun plural -ras or -ra
any of several mammals of the horse family (Equidae), such as Equus burchelli (the common zebra), of southern and eastern Africa, having distinctive black-and-white striped hides
Derived forms of zebra
zebra-like or zebraic (zɪˈbreɪɪk), adjective zebrine (ˈziːbraɪn, ˈzɛb-) or zebroid, adjectiveWord Origin for zebra
C16: via Italian from Old Spanish: wild ass, probably from Vulgar Latin
eciferus (unattested) wild horse, from Latin
equiferus, from
equus horse +
ferus wild
British Dictionary definitions for zebra (2 of 2)
Zebra
/ (ˈziːbrə, ˈzɛbrə) /
noun finance
a noninterest-paying bond in which the accrued income is taxed annually rather than on redemption
Compare zero (def. 12)
Word Origin for Zebra
C20: from
zero-coupon bond