Asiatic
Americanadjective
noun
noun
Sensitive Note
See Asian.
Usage
Asiatic is the correct word to use in scientific language when talking about flora, fauna and anthropology, for instance Asiatic lion . Using it as a noun is offensive and old-fashioned
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of Asiatic
First recorded in 1625–35; from Latin Asiāticus, from Greek Asiātikos; see Asia, -tic ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The zoo is home to more than 8,000 animals – from a colony of leafcutter ants to critically endangered Asiatic lions.
From BBC • Jan. 6, 2026
Majrad could have been the Asiatic cheetah’s salvation; instead, her demise may signal its doom.
From Slate • May 25, 2024
The jailings prompted a massive outcry from conservationists, academics, and political leaders urging Iran to release the conservationists, who were working to protect endangered species such as the Asiatic cheetah.
From Science Magazine • Apr. 10, 2024
Asiatic proximity isn’t just token aesthetics, but a meaningful lesson and layer to the show.
From Salon • Mar. 3, 2024
That problem also derailed domestication of North American bighorn sheep, which belong to the same genus as Asiatic mouflon sheep, ancestor of our domestic sheep.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.