Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

cheetah

American  
[chee-tuh] / ˈtʃi tə /

noun

cheetahs plural
  1. a cat, Acinonyx jubatus, of southwestern Asia and Africa, resembling a leopard but having certain doglike characteristics, often trained for hunting deer, antelope, etc.: an endangered species.


cheetah British  
/ ˈtʃiːtə /

noun

  1. a large feline mammal, Acinonyx jubatus, of Africa and SW Asia: the swiftest mammal, having very long legs, nonretractile claws, and a black-spotted light-brown coat

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of cheetah

1695–1705; < Hindi cītā < Sanskrit citraka leopard; compare Pali cittaka, Prakrit cittaya

Compare meaning

How does cheetah 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:

One of the pieces in the exhibition is an A-line shag mini dress in cheetah print that Saar made for herself in 1969, and has been passed through the hands of her daughters and granddaughters.

From Los Angeles Times May 7, 2026

A story for young readers about a rescue dog and a young cheetah is inspired by real-world zoo practices.

From The Wall Street Journal Mar. 20, 2026

To better understand how evolution shaped these sounds, the researchers compared domestic cat meows with those of five wild cat species: African wildcat, European wildcat, jungle cat, cheetah, and cougar.

From Science Daily Feb. 11, 2026

"I want to show the world what Africa really is," Speed declared during his South Africa stop - where he went car-spinning, learned some amapiano dance moves and got scratched by a cheetah.

From BBC Jan. 17, 2026

He bought me a bag of popcorn, and we returned to the cheetah cage.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

If she can prove that cheetahs are worth saving, she thinks, she can help the cheetahs who are living in “the parched grassland she can only imagine. The place that would’ve been her home, too.”

From The Wall Street Journal Mar. 20, 2026

Similar cases involving cheetahs from Syria, a gorilla from Haiti, and bonobos from Iraq are among those questioned by CITES.

From Barron's Nov. 9, 2025

Many foreign and local tourists visit the reserve to see its wildlife, including lions, leopards and cheetahs.

From BBC May 1, 2024

For years, it seemed most people considered the animals unappealing and preferred seeing “real” predators like lions or cheetahs.

From National Geographic Feb. 8, 2024

As I already mentioned, tame cheetahs were prized by ancient Egyptians and Assyrians and modern Indians as hunting animals infinitely superior to dogs.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training