javelina
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of javelina
An Americanism dating back to 1815–25; from Latin American Spanish jabalina, from Spanish: feminine of jabalín “wild boar,” dialectal variant of jabalí, from Arabic (khinzīr) jabalī “mountain (boar)”
Compare meaning
How does javelina compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
See Examples For:
Behrends, who lives nearby, said the desert hills are so quiet that some residents leave their homes unlocked, and the most excitement they see is wildlife, including rattlesnakes and wild javelina pigs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026
But as Bisbee and the club keep dancing, the javelina are running circles around them — shredding whatever they want, whenever they want.
From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2023
The crew spotted significant numbers of elk, deer, javelina and even rabbits — but no additional cattle were found following the operation.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 28, 2023
The pangrams from yesterday’s Spelling Bee were javelin and javelina.
From New York Times ● Aug. 16, 2022
The only thing that showed up, however, was a little band of javelina hogs, and I knew better than to shoot them.
From "Old Yeller" by Fred Gipson
There’s a chapter called “Javelina Sunset,” which is about javelinas coming into the park looking for food.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2024
On Dec. 11, video recorders captured a mountain lion sniffing around, followed on Dec. 14 by a foraging mama bear and cub, two javelinas on Dec. 18 and, the next day, a sad-eyed ringtail cat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2024
So far, the javelinas have hit eight spots on the course, from all sides.
From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2023
Amid the push to close those gaps, environmentalists like Traphagen have called for removing some other sections of barrier they say have hurt local wildlife like bobcats, mountain lions, javelinas and mule deer.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 28, 2022
After that Rosal was willing to let the javelinas alone.
From "Old Yeller" by Fred Gipson
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.
