yak

¹

[ yak ]

noun

1. a large, stocky, shaggy-haired wild ox, Bos grunniens, of the Tibetan highlands, having long, curved horns: endangered.
2. a domesticated variety of this animal.

yak

²

[ yak ]

verb (used without object)

, yakked, yak·king.

1. to talk, especially uninterruptedly and idly; gab; chatter:

   They've been yakking on the phone for over an hour.

noun

1. incessant idle or gossipy talk.

yak

³

[ yak ]

noun

, Slang.

, yakked, yak·king.

1. yuk ¹.

yak

¹

/ jæk /

noun

1. Alsoyakety-yak noisy, continuous, and trivial talk or conversation

verb

1. intr to chatter or talk in this way; jabber

yak

²

/ jæk /

noun

1. a wild and domesticated type of cattle, Bos grunniens, of Tibet, having long horns and long shaggy hair

Other Words From

• yakker noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of yak¹

First recorded in 1785–95; from Tibetan gyag

Origin of yak²

An Americanism dating to 1820–25 for yakety-yak ( def ) (noun)

Word History and Origins

Origin of yak¹

C20: of imitative origin

Origin of yak²

C19: from Tibetan gyag

Example Sentences

The region, which is the traditional homeland of the Sherpa people, is known for its high-altitude peaks, though the park’s terrain varies from jewel-toned glacial rivers to grazing lands for herds of yak to verdant forests of bamboo and hemlock.

From Outside Online

Muskox, reindeer, moose, bison, yak, sheep, Yukatian horses and Kalmykian cows have arrived over the years.

From Science News For Students

There’s enough baggage here to bow a yak, and watching them unpack it makes for raw viewing.

From Outside Online

Around 150 animals live here, including horses, moose, reindeer, bison and yaks.

From Science News For Students

The greater availability of this wild prey reduces the risks to yaks from wolves and snow leopards, point out conservationists.

From Ozy

“I happened upon yak butter tea, a traditional high-energy food eaten by Tibetans,” Asprey says.

From The Daily Beast

This was the place where I had met the yak herds two months before when they were pasturing their yaks on the grassy uplands.

From Project Gutenberg

The yak dung is in many places the only fuel to be got and is most carefully picked up.

From Project Gutenberg

In the Rongbuk Valley there was no wood and our supply of yak dung had to come up from Chbuk.

From Project Gutenberg

He was walking with a disciple on the mountain one day, when they found an old yak's horn lying in the path.

From Project Gutenberg

It might be supposed that so hairy an animal as the yak would become dirty and unkempt.

From Project Gutenberg