bison

American  

[bahy-suhn, -zuhn] / ˈbaɪ sən, -zən /

noun

• bison
  plural

1. Also called American bison, American buffalo. a North American, oxlike ruminant, Bison bison, having a large head and high, humped shoulders: formerly common in North America, its small remaining population in isolated western areas of the U.S. and Canada is now protected.

2. Also called wisent. a related animal, Bison bonasus, of Europe, less shaggy and slightly larger than the American bison: now greatly reduced in number.

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bison British  

/ ˈbaɪsən /

noun

1. Also called: American bison, buffalo. a member of the cattle tribe, Bison bison , formerly widely distributed over the prairies of W North America but now confined to reserves and parks, with a massive head, shaggy forequarters, and a humped back

2. Also called: wisent, European bison. a closely related and similar animal, Bison bonasus , formerly widespread in Europe

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• bisontine
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• bison
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of bison

1350–1400; Middle English bisontes (plural) < Latin (nominative singular bisōn ) < Germanic; compare Old High German wisunt, Old English wesend, Old Norse visundr

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Explanation

A bison is a large, shaggy, hoofed animal. Bison are mostly native to North America, though there is one species found in Western Europe and Central Asia. The most common type of bison is also called a buffalo, and it's the largest land animal in North America. Bison tend to travel in herds and periodically wallow in dirt to keep themselves cool and free of parasites, and while they're generally slow-moving, they can run as fast as 35 miles per hour when they want to. The word bison is Latin for "wild ox," ultimately from a Slavic or Baltic root meaning "the stinking animal."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bison

The 56-year-old Frenchman has taken on the unusual challenge of training European bison to perform things they would not naturally do in the wild.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

"That is much easier for the animals to understand," said Deforge, who tells his bison "Molodets!"

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

But European bison have "a much more difficult and slightly more aggressive temperament".

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

In 2002, Turner opened Ted’s Montana Grill, he said, to help recover an animal once nearly extinct, putting bison on menus in over a dozen states.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Before Cahokia's rise, people were slowly hunting the local deer and bison populations to extinction.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

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