chimpanzee

American  

[chim-pan-zee, chim-pan-zee] / ˌtʃɪm pænˈzi, tʃɪmˈpæn zi /

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.

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chimpanzee British  

/ ˌtʃɪmpænˈziː /

noun

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

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Etymology

Origin of chimpanzee

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

Compare meaning

How does chimpanzee compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• orangutan vs. chimpanzee

Explanation

Chimpanzees are one of our closest ape relatives, along with bonobos. In the wild, chimpanzees live in social family groups and swing from tree to tree using their long arms. As a human, you share 98.7 percent of your genes with chimpanzees, as well as a common ancestor. Known as chimps for short, these endangered primates have furry bodies and smooth, expressive faces. They're one of the few non-human animals that use tools, and in captivity have been taught basic sign language. Chimpanzee is from the Bantu word chimpenze, "ape."

Example Sentences

There again, maybe the laugh is on the rest of us, because these folks are still pulling down the big bucks, even after their predictions worked out worse than the proverbial blindfolded chimpanzee throwing darts.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 26, 2025

In 2022, the zoo welcomed one of the most genetically valuable chimpanzee males in North America, Pu’iwa, from Hawaii.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 18, 2025

Ngogo is home to the largest known chimpanzee community in Africa.

From Science Daily • Dec. 1, 2025

These early humans are thought to have lived alongside their evolutionary ancestors: a pre-human group, called australopithecines, who had larger teeth and a mix of chimpanzee and human traits.

From BBC • Nov. 4, 2025

Our chimpanzee cousins usually live in small troops of several dozen individuals.

From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

Related Words

• ape
• baboon
• gorilla
• lemur
• orangutan