dewlap

American  

[doo-lap, dyoo-] / ˈduˌlæp, ˈdyu- /

noun

1. a pendulous fold of skin under the throat of a bovine animal.

2. any similar part in other animals, as the wattle of fowl or the inflatable loose skin under the throat of some lizards.

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dewlap British  

/ ˈdjuːˌlæp /

noun

1. a loose fold of skin hanging from beneath the throat in cattle, dogs, etc

2. loose skin on an elderly person's throat

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Other Word Forms

• dewlapped adjective

Etymology

Origin of dewlap

1350–1400; Middle English dew ( e ) lappe, apparently dewe dew + lappe lap ¹; compare Danish dog-læp, Dutch (dial.) dauw-zwengel; literal sense is unclear

Example Sentences

In Brazil, 80% of the cows are Zebus, a subspecies originating in India with a distinctive hump and dewlap, or folds of draping neck skin.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 3, 2024

An imposing white cow with a distinctive hump on her back and flaps of "dewlap" skin flowing from her neck like a fashionable scarf set a record at auction last June in Arandú, Brazil.

From National Geographic • Jan. 24, 2024

She raised her ears from a head that remained at rest atop two rolls of dewlap and twitched her nose as if to swipe me aside.

From New York Times • Nov. 9, 2018

One of the largest is the Perentetron: a long-tailed endurance predator that stands tall above the ground and has a particularly long, robust neck and massive dewlap.

From Scientific American • Apr. 1, 2013

He had to wear his silly bellhop’s cap tilted sideways, its tight plastic strap sunk into his sagging dewlap.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy