chameleon
[kuh-mee-lee-uh n, -meel-yuh n]
- any of numerous Old World lizards of the family Chamaeleontidae, characterized by the ability to change the color of their skin, very slow locomotion, and a projectile tongue.
- any of several American lizards capable of changing the color of the skin, especially Anolis carolinensis (American chameleon), of the southeastern U.S.
- a changeable, fickle, or inconstant person.
- (initial capital letter) Astronomy. Chamaeleon.
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Origin of chameleon
Chamaeleon
[kuh-mee-lee-uh n, -meel-yuh n]
- a small southern constellation between Musca and Hydrus.
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Also Cha·me·le·on.
Origin of Chamaeleon
From Latin
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for chameleon
Contemporary Examples
You have to be an everyman and chameleon, so that every bit of you is involved in the end.
While he could be a chameleon on the international stage, he was never a man of dialogue on the domestic front.
He is also a chameleon, he says, able to adapt his personality to appease any audience.
Far from a crude warlord, he was a chameleon, equally comfortable as a preacher or a warrior.
These days, Dougherty calls McCain a “chameleon” who is “flopping all over the place” to make himself attractive to voters.
Historical Examples
Not that mine is altogether a chameleon spirit, with no hue of its own.
Beneath an Umbrella (From "Twice Told Tales")Nathaniel Hawthorne
I named my chameleon "Cross-ci Cross-a," in honour of Mr. Cross.
My Double LifeSarah Bernhardt
During the day, no doubt, she melted into the sky like a chameleon.
The Cruise of the Dry DockT. S. Stribling
It is not pleasant to have you imitate the chameleon, in this manner.
Louisiana LouWilliam West Winter
Lonnie didn't stop to question if it really was essence of chameleon juice.
Zero DataCharles Saphro
chameleon
- any lizard of the family Chamaeleontidae of Africa and Madagascar, having long slender legs, a prehensile tail and tongue, and the ability to change colour
- a changeable or fickle person
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Word Origin
C14: from Latin chamaeleon, from Greek khamaileōn, from khamai on the ground + leōn lion
Chamaeleon
- a faint constellation lying between Volans and the South celestial pole
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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
Word Origin and History for chameleon
n.
mid-14c., camelion, from Old French caméléon, from Latin chamaeleon, from Greek khamaileon "the chameleon," from khamai "on the ground" (also "dwarf"), akin to chthon "earth" (see chthonic) + leon "lion" (see lion). Perhaps the large head-crest on some species was thought to resemble a lion's mane. The classical -h- was restored in English early 18c. Figurative sense of "variable person" is 1580s. It formerly was supposed to live on air (cf. "Hamlet" III.ii.98).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper