armadillo

American  

[ahr-muh-dil-oh] / ˌɑr məˈdɪl oʊ /

noun

armadillos plural

1. any of several burrowing, chiefly nocturnal mammals constituting the family Dasypodidae, ranging from the southern U.S. through South America, having strong claws and a jointed protective covering of bony plates: used in certain areas for food.

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armadillo British  

/ ˌɑːməˈdɪləʊ /

noun

1. any edentate mammal of the family Dasypodidae of Central and South America and S North America, such as Priodontes giganteus ( giant armadillo ). They are burrowing animals, with peglike rootless teeth and a covering of strong horny plates over most of the body

2. another name for pichiciego

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• armadillos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of armadillo

1570–80; < Spanish, equivalent to armad ( o ) armed (< Latin armātus; see arm ², -ate ¹) + -illo < Latin -illus diminutive suffix

Compare meaning

How does armadillo compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• aardvark vs. armadillo

Explanation

An armadillo is a four-legged animal with a rounded body that's covered in hard plates. You're most likely to see an armadillo in South or Central America, or possibly in the southern US. Armadillos range from the size of a chipmunk to as big as a large dog. They're nocturnal, so they mostly hunt for food at night and sleep during the day, and are excellent diggers, with very sharp claws. Armadillos are distinctive because of the bony plates that cover them and their protective habit of rolling into a ball. Armadillo is Spanish, the diminutive form of armado, or "armored."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

armadillo armadillos

Two rare snow leopard cubs have been born at the park, alongside Himalayan monals and red deer, as well as Bru the capybara, Snoot the giant armadillo and Atty the sloth at Edinburgh Zoo.

From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026

Disneyland regulars who go on the ride multiple times will also become familiar with Lari the armadillo, a good-natured thief who appears multiple times throughout the ride.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 14, 2024

Today, there are only three survivors: the nine-banded armadillo, the Virginia opossum and the North American porcupine.

From Science Daily ● May 28, 2024

Eating armadillo meat is not a clear cause of leprosy, but capturing and raising armadillos, along with preparing its meat, are risk factors.

From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2024

“Granddaddy,” I said, “why do you have that armadillo? I bet you could buy a much better one.”

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly

A zoo has marked the 19th birthday of a pair of armadillos this week.

From BBC ● Mar. 17, 2026

The creature is related to current armadillos, anteaters and sloths, though in contrast to some of its relatives, Mylodon did not burrow or climb trees.

From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2024

Before this discovery, armadillos were considered to be the only living mammals with these structures.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 6, 2024

"Animals like sloths and armadillos came north, while horses, tapirs, bears and elephants went south," said study co-author Bruce MacFadden, curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Florida Museum of Natural History.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 20, 2024

What hand, Darwin asked, had guided the creation of such different varieties of finches on those distant volcanic islands or made small armadillos out of giant precursors on the plains of South America?

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee