iguana

American  

[ih-gwah-nuh] / ɪˈgwɑ nə /

noun

1. a large, arboreal lizard, Iguana iguana, native to Central and South America, having stout legs and a crest of spines from neck to tail.

2. any of various related lizards of the genera Iguana, Ctenosaura, Conolophus, and Amblyrhynchus.

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iguana British  

/ ɪˈɡwɑːnə /

noun

1. either of two large tropical American arboreal herbivorous lizards of the genus Iguana, esp I. iguana ( common iguana ), having a greyish-green body with a row of spines along the back: family Iguanidae

2. Also called: iguanid.  any other lizard of the tropical American family Iguanidae

3. another name for leguaan

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Other Word Forms

• iguanian noun

Etymology

Origin of iguana

1545–55; < Spanish < Arawak iwana

Example Sentences

Mason had stumbled over her words and talked about iguanas and the price of coffee as she reported on the day's sports events.

From BBC

She stumbled over several words and spoke about everything from the price of coffee in Italy to iguanas in the United States, leaving her co-hosts in the studio bemused.

From Barron's

Fred was an iguana, spiky as a dragon, with a cheerful snub nose.

From Literature

It got so chilly in parts of Florida that iguanas were frozen in place.

From Los Angeles Times

While cold-stunned iguanas fall from trees in Florida and videos circulate of frozen ‘exploding’ trees in the Northeast, Southern California is working up a sweat.

From Los Angeles Times