dik-dik

[ dik-dik ]

/ ˈdɪkˌdɪk /

noun

any antelope of the genus Madoqua or Rhynchotragus, of eastern and southwestern Africa, growing only to 14 inches (36 cm) high at the shoulder.

Nearby words

diiodide, diiodomethane, diisobutyl phthalate, dijon, dijon mustard, dik-dik, dike, diketone, diketopiperazine, dikkop, diktat

Origin of dik-dik

First recorded in 1880–85; said to be a name imitative of the animal's cry, but language of orig. not ascertained

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for dik-dik

After I had gone a little way a dik-dik crossed the dry river-bed in front of me; I fired at him, but it was too long a shot.
Sport in Abyssinia|Dermot Mayo
At the time the dik-dik came out I heard pigs grunting in a little dell below me, but I could not see them at all.
Sport in Abyssinia|Dermot Mayo
They are all small, the dik-dik being scarcely larger than a rabbit, and they are divided into as many subspecies as the duiker.
In Africa|John T. McCutcheon
For instance, there's the oribi and the dik-dik, to say nothing of the steinbuck and the klipspringer.
In Africa|John T. McCutcheon

Going through the jungle I put up a dik-dik hind; this animal trotted away out of shot range, and then stopped and looked at me.
Sport in Abyssinia|Dermot Mayo

British Dictionary definitions for dik-dik

dik-dik

/ (ˈdɪkˌdɪk) /

noun

any small antelope of the genus Madoqua, inhabiting semiarid regions of Africa, having an elongated muzzle and, in the male, small stout horns

Word Origin for dik-dik

C19: an East African name, probably of imitative origin

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