carnivorous

[ kahr-niv-er-uhs ]

/ kɑrˈnɪv ər əs /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR carnivorous ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

flesh-eating: A dog is a carnivorous animal.

Words nearby carnivorous

carnival, carnival glass, carnivalesque, carnivora, carnivore, carnivorous, carnose, carnot, carnot cycle, carnot engine, carnot principle

Origin of carnivorous

1640–50; < Latin carnivorus, equivalent to carni- (combining form of carō flesh) + -vorus -vorous

SYNONYMS FOR carnivorous

1 meat-eating, predatory, predacious.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR carnivorous ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM carnivorous

car·niv·o·rism, nouncar·niv·o·rous·ly, adverbcar·niv·o·rous·ness, nounnon·car·niv·o·rous, adjective

non·car·niv·o·rous·ly, adverbnon·car·niv·o·rous·ness, nounun·car·niv·o·rous, adjectiveun·car·niv·o·rous·ly, adverbun·car·niv·o·rous·ness, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH carnivorous

carnivorous herbivorous omnivorous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for carnivorous

“Lots of vegetarians have got a carnivorous streak,” she said.
Can Vegetarians Eat In-Vitro Meat? The Debate Rages.|Nico Hines|August 7, 2013|DAILY BEAST
See how Psy, Lady Gaga, and a carnivorous toddler stack up on the most-watched list.
YouTube’s 10 Most-Watched Videos Ever|Jake Heller, Patrice Howard|April 23, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The human barrier of overturned cars and debris was swarming with carnivorous automatons.
The Extinction Parade: An Original Zombie Story by Max Brooks|Max Brooks|January 14, 2011|DAILY BEAST
This delicious vegetarian-friendly dish will satisfy even the most carnivorous of crews.
Fresh Picks|Alicia Silverstone|October 27, 2009|DAILY BEAST

On the whole it is perhaps safe to say that it is shorter in carnivorous than in vegetable-feeding beasts.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia|Frank Evers Beddard
Milk is found curdled in the stomachs of all animals, old as well as young, and even of carnivorous ones, as of hawks.
Zoonomia, Vol. II|Erasmus Darwin
We now come to a group of carnivorous or flesh-eating mammals which live in the water—the seals.
The Animal World, A Book of Natural History|Theodore Wood
For the most part the species are carnivorous or insectivorous.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 7|Various
These are small, carnivorous species, with rather elongated bodies, terminating in tail fins that are not forked.
The Sea Shore|William S. Furneaux

British Dictionary definitions for carnivorous

carnivorous

/ (kɑːˈnɪvərəs) /

adjective

(esp of animals) feeding on flesh

(of plants such as the pitcher plant and sundew) able to trap and digest insects and other small animals

of or relating to the Carnivora

informal aggressively ambitious or reactionary

Derived forms of carnivorous

carnivorously, adverbcarnivorousness, noun

Word Origin for carnivorous

C17: from Latin carnivorus, from carō flesh + vorāre to consume

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012