Zulu
Americannoun
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a member of a Nguni people living mainly in Natal, Republic of South Africa.
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the Bantu language of the Zulu.
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a word used in communications to represent the letter Z.
adjective
noun
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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
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the language of this people, belonging to the Bantu group of the Niger-Congo family, closely related to Swazi and Xhosa
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communications a code word for the letter z
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Zulu
from Zulu amaZulu people of the sky
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.
Shaka Zulu was a famed leader of the Zulu nation.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
Interviewed on a Zambian YouTube news channel on Wednesday evening, Lungu family spokesman Makebi Zulu disputed that the appeals process had lapsed saying that the correct procedure had been followed.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
Her notable works include Udeliwe, regarded as one of South Africa's first black feature films, and the historical drama Shaka Zulu.
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026
“That’s not how you sing it, don’t mess up our language like that,” Jonasi says, before singing the correct lyrics in Zulu.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026
Luthuli was a teacher, a devout Christian, and a proud Zulu chief, but he was even more firmly committed to the struggle against apartheid.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
