colobus

[ kol-uh-buhs, kuh-loh- ]

noun

, plural col·o·bus·es, col·o·bi [kol, -, uh, -bahy, k, uh, -, loh, -bahy].

1. any of several large, slender African monkeys of the genus Colobus, lacking thumbs and having long silky fur of black and white ( C. polykomos ), black and reddish-brown ( C. badius ), or olive ( C. verus ): now dwindling.

colobus

/ ˈkɒləbəs /

noun

1. any leaf-eating arboreal Old World monkey of the genus Colobus, of W and central Africa, having a slender body, long silky fur, long tail, and reduced or absent thumbs

Word History and Origins

Origin of colobus¹

1811; < New Latin, the genus name < Greek kolobós docked, maimed; so named from the mutilated appearance of the thumbless hands

Word History and Origins

Origin of colobus¹

C19: New Latin, from Greek kolobos cut short; referring to its thumb

Example Sentences

There are some seven species of monkeys, including two baboons and one colobus.

From Project Gutenberg

There are almost always five well-developed digits, but in the genera Colobus and Ateles the pollex is vestigial.

From Project Gutenberg

In Semnopithecus and Colobus there are generally seven, but sometimes eight pairs of true ribs.

From Project Gutenberg

In Africa, the representatives of this last-mentioned tribe are found in the Colobus monkeys.

From Project Gutenberg

But his hair contradicts this—being straight as needles, and black as the skin of a Colobus monkey.

From Project Gutenberg