chimpanzee

[chim-pan-zee, chim-pan-zee]

noun

1. a very social great ape of sub-Saharan Africa, belonging to the genus Pan and having a brown-to-black coat, a relatively hairless face with a rounded muzzle, prominent ears, and hands adapted for knuckle-walking, and noted for its intelligence and humanlike behavior: both species, the common chimpanzee (P. troglodytes ) and the bonobo (P. paniscus ), are greatly reduced in number and considered endangered.

chimpanzee

/ ˌtʃɪmpænˈziː /

noun

1. a gregarious and intelligent anthropoid ape, Pan troglodytes, inhabiting forests in central W Africa

Word History and Origins

Origin of chimpanzee¹

First recorded in 1730–40; origin uncertain; possibly from Vili , a Bantu language spoken on the Atlantic coast between southern Gabon and northern Angola

Word History and Origins

Origin of chimpanzee¹

C18: from Kongo dialect

Example Sentences

Jane Goodall, an iconic figure in conservation whose work transformed human-animal relations, is perhaps best known for the trailblazing research she carried out with chimpanzees at Gombe Stream National Park, in what is now Tanzania.

Read more on Salon

In the many years that Jane Goodall observed and studied chimpanzees, she revolutionised our understanding of our closest primate cousins.

Read more on BBC

A tireless advocate of preserving chimpanzees’ natural habitat, Goodall died on Wednesday morning in California of natural causes, the Jane Goodall Institute announced on its Instagram page.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Conservationist Dame Jane Goodall, a world-leading expert on chimpanzees, has died aged 91.

Read more on BBC

The second was born Sept. 9 to a chimpanzee named Vindi, 18, the officials said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• ape 
• baboon 
• gorilla 
• lemur 
• orangutan