ankus

American  

[ang-kuhs, uhng-kuhsh] / ˈæŋ kəs, ˈʌŋ kəʃ /

noun

plural

ankus, ankuses

1. an elephant goad of India with a spike and a hook at one end.

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ankus British  

/ ˈæŋkəs /

noun

1. a stick used, esp in India, for goading elephants

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Etymology

Origin of ankus

1885–90; < Hindi; akin to angle ²

Example Sentences

Deesa handed Chihun the heavy ankus, the iron elephant- goad.

From Life's Handicap by Kipling, Rudyard

If the paths that he had followed were sometimes tortuous, along many of them he had been guided by the ankus of that mahout in whose directions his faith had taught him to confide.

From Mount Music by Ross, Martin

The elephant appeared to understand the mixture of Hindu, French, and Breton—or perhaps it was the sight of the steel ankus that Speed flourished in his quality of mahout.

From The Maids of Paradise by Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William)

Ah, Sahib," said Ahmed, resting his ankus or goad on the skull of his mount, "there is said to be another prisoner in the palace prison.

From The Adventures of Kathlyn by MacGrath, Harold

When at last we got her near Dundora, the latter's mahout, viciously belabouring her thick skull with the ankus, told us that the cause of her fright was only a small pariah dog.

From Life in an Indian Outpost by Casserly, Gordon