orangutan

Also o·rang-u·tan;
Also

[aw-rang-oo-tan, oh-rang-, uh-rang-]

noun

1. either of two species of long-armed, arboreal great ape, the only extant members of the subfamily Ponginae, inhabiting Borneo (Pongo pygmaeus ) and Sumatra (P. abelii ): both species, including all three of the Bornean subspecies, are endangered.

Word History and Origins

Origin of orangutan¹

First recorded in 1690–1700; from Dutch orang outang, apparently from Malay: literally, “forest man” ( Malay orang “man, person” + (h)utan “forest”

Example Sentences

Over 90 percent of orangutan habitat has been destroyed in the last two decades alone.

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They compared human responses to the visual responses of five chimpanzees, two gorillas, and two orangutans at the Basel Zoo.

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I have a very public love for orangutans.

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And he said, “Vision of America? Ten years ago I was working with an orangutan. Now they think I’m Gandhi. I just took the best role available.”

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A wounded orangutan recently made headlines for using a plant paste to heal an injury.

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Related Words

• ape 
• baboon 
• chimpanzee 
• gorilla 
• lemur