dromedary

[ drom-i-der-ee, druhm- ]

noun,plural drom·e·dar·ies.

the single-humped camel, Camelus dromedarius, of Arabia and northern Africa.

Origin of dromedary

1300–50; Middle English dromedarie, -ary (<Anglo-French ) <Late Latin dromedārius (camēlus) <Greek dromad- (stem of dromás) running + Latin -ārius-ary

Compare Bactrian camel.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dromedary in a sentence

It is said that these persons performed in eleven days, upon dromedaries, a journey of 30 or 40 days, and executed their business.
The Geography of Strabo, Volume III (of 3) | Strabo
Long rows of dromedaries loaded with luggage were moving stately forward.
Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, No. 459 | Various
Of the two dromedaries which I had obtained for this journey, I mounted one myself, and put Dthemetri on the other.
Eothen | A. W. Kinglake
They found the Masdakite at Nesptah's inn with some capital dromedaries and the necessary drivers and attendants.
The Bride of the Nile, Complete | Georg Ebers
Then came unclean wagers; they buried their heads in the amphoras and drank on without interruption, like thirsty dromedaries.
Salammbo | Gustave Flaubert

British Dictionary definitions for dromedary

dromedary

/ (ˈdrʌmədərɪ, -drɪ, ˈdrɒm-) /

nounplural -daries

a type of Arabian camel bred for racing and riding, having a single hump and long slender legs
another name for Arabian camel

Origin of dromedary

C14: from Late Latin dromedārius (camēlus), from Greek dromas running

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

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