Zulu

[ zoo-loo ]

noun,plural Zu·lus, (especially collectively) Zu·lu for 1.
  1. a member of a Nguni people living mainly in Natal, Republic of South Africa.

  2. the Bantu language of the Zulu.

  1. a word used in communications to represent the letter Z.

adjective
  1. of or relating to the Zulus or their language.

Words Nearby Zulu

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Zulu in a sentence

  • The other big new South African DJ-producer is Culoe De Song, born Culolethu Zulu in Durban.

  • It was almost like an American version of the old Michael Caine classic movie Zulu.

    Why I Went Back to Iraq | Thomas E. Ricks | February 10, 2009 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • Among the Zulu king's attendants was a man who could speak Sechwana, and with him Moffat at once got into conversation.

    Robert Moffat | David J. Deane
  • But, if this here man was a—was a Zulu, I'd say he was a brave man.

    Mr. Dooley in Peace and in War | Finley Peter Dunne
  • Outside he found his host, in converse with a Zulu, not one of the three men who had met him on his arrival.

    Forging the Blades | Bertram Mitford
  • Here again he was in a quandary, for except for a word or two of ordinary use he could understand no Zulu.

    Forging the Blades | Bertram Mitford
  • A Zulu was approaching them down the road, a tall man, ringed, and clad in a long overcoat.

    Forging the Blades | Bertram Mitford

British Dictionary definitions for Zulu

Zulu

/ (ˈzuːlʊ, -luː) /


noun
  1. plural -lus or -lu a member of a tall Negroid people of SE Africa, living chiefly in South Africa, who became dominant during the 19th century due to a warrior-clan system organized by the powerful leader, Shaka

  2. the language of this people, belonging to the Bantu group of the Niger-Congo family, closely related to Swazi and Xhosa

  1. communications a code word for the letter z

Origin of Zulu

1
from Zulu amaZulu people of the sky

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012