Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A large wild cat such as a leopard or jaguar, especially in a color form with black fur.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A leopard. See also cut under
leopard . - noun The American cougar or puma, Felis concolor. See cut under
cougar . Also calledpainter .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Zoöl.) A large dark-colored variety of the leopard, by some zoölogists considered a distinct species. It is marked with large ringlike spots, the centers of which are darker than the color of the body.
- noun (Zoöl.) In America, the name is applied to the puma, or cougar, and sometimes to the jaguar.
- noun (Zoöl.) the ocelot.
- noun (Zoöl.) a spotted East Indian cowry (
Cypræa pantherina ); -- so called from its color.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Any of various
big cats with black fur; most especially, the black-coatedleopard of India. - noun Any big cat of the genus
Panthera . - noun A
cougar ; especially the Florida panther.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a large spotted feline of tropical America similar to the leopard; in some classifications considered a member of the genus Felis
- noun a leopard in the black color phase
- noun large American feline resembling a lion
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Of the larger quadrupeds belonging to this continent, the bears, and wolves, and foxes are often in motion by starlight; the moose and the deer frequently feed under a dark sky; the panther is almost wholly nocturnal; the wary and industrious beaver also works at night; that singular creature, the opossum, sleeps in his tree by day and comes down at night.
Rural Hours 1887
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"A black panther is a black (melanistic) color variant of one of several species of larger cat which are known by the term panther in various parts of the world, and belong to the feline genus panthera which contains lions, tigers, leopards and jaguars.
Cute Overload 2009
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Doesn't sound anything like a cougar, and of course the designation "black panther" is useless from a biological standpoint.
Archive 2007-12-01 2007
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'Black panther is a term that does not denote any particular species of cat.
Archive 2007-04-01 2007
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The latest sighting of a reported black panther is in an area off of Highway 154 near Rhonesboro, in an area called Raintree Lake.
Archive 2007-03-01 2007
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"Is this the beast some call a panther or painter?" asked Roger.
Dave Porter at Star Ranch Or, The Cowboy's Secret Edward Stratemeyer 1896
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The name panther is usually applied only to the large, fulvous variety of _Felis pardus (Linn.) (F. leopardus, Leopardus varius) _.
Rambles and Recollections of an Indian Official William Sleeman 1822
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It is sometimes referred to as the panther, especially rare [[melanism | melanistic]] black leopards (which are also spotted, but black-on-black so that the spots are not readily apparent).
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It is sometimes referred to as the panther, especially rare [[melanism | melanistic]] black leopards (which are also spotted, but black-on-black so that the spots are not readily apparent).
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Turns out the panther was a large stuffed toy, apparently placed in the pipe as a hoax.
Tasering of Panter 2009
lampbane commented on the word panther
"Cunning, quick and sleek, Panther stalks her prey with unrelenting force and terrifying precision. Possessing both the strength of a savage beast and the ruthless instinct of a predator, you stand about as much chance against her as a mouse does against a jungle cat."
(Official biography on NBC's American Gladiators website)
September 6, 2008
bilby commented on the word panther
The panther is like a leopard,
Except it hasn't been peppered,
Should you behold a panther crouch,
Prepare to say Ouch.
Better yet, if called by a panther,
Don't anther.
- Ogden Nash, 'The Panther'.
December 5, 2008
john commented on the word panther
“The Grumman F9F Panther was the manufacturer's first jet fighter and the U.S. Navy's second. The Panther was the most widely used U.S. Navy jet fighter of the Korean War.�? More on Wikipedia.
December 30, 2008