hyena

Valid in Scrabble

Scrabble points
11
Words With Friends
10
Letters
5
Pronunciation
/haɪˈiːnə/

Definition of hyena

2 senses · 1 part of speech · etymology included

noun

  1. Any of the medium-sized to large feliform carnivores of the family Hyaenidae, native to Africa and Asia and noted for the sound similar to laughter which they can make if excited.
    “The udder of the hyena, tied on the left arm, enticed the affection of any desired woman.”
    “I took no systematic data on the costs to cheetahs and hyenas, but some anecdotes suggest that both parties took numerical advantage and hunger into account.”
    “Hyenas are scavengers, which means they eat food left behind by other animals and people.”
    “Hyena biologists often think of spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) as baboons with big teeth and relatively small brains.”
See all 2 definitions

noun

  1. Any of the medium-sized to large feliform carnivores of the family Hyaenidae, native to Africa and Asia and noted for the sound similar to laughter which they can make if excited.
    “The udder of the hyena, tied on the left arm, enticed the affection of any desired woman.”
    “I took no systematic data on the costs to cheetahs and hyenas, but some anecdotes suggest that both parties took numerical advantage and hunger into account.”
    “Hyenas are scavengers, which means they eat food left behind by other animals and people.”
    “Hyena biologists often think of spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) as baboons with big teeth and relatively small brains.”
  2. A man that performs ritualized sex acts with recently widowed women and menarchal girls.
    “see Citations:hyena”

Definitions from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.

Etymology

From Middle English hiena, variant of hyene, from Old French hiene, from Medieval Latin hyēna, from Latin hyaena, from Ancient Greek ὕαινα (húaina). Displaced native Old English nihtgenġe (literally “night walker”).

Anagrams of hyena

3 plays · some not in Scrabble

Hooks

1 extension · 1 back

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