elk

[elk]

noun, plural elks, (especially collectively) elk for 1, 2.

Also called European elk. the moose, Alces alces.
Also called American elk, wapiti. a large North American deer, Cervus canadensis, the male of which has large, spreading antlers.
a pliable leather used for sport shoes, made originally of elk hide but now of calfskin or cowhide tanned and smoked to resemble elk hide.

(initial capital letter) a member of a fraternal organization (Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks) that supports or contributes to various charitable causes.

Origin of elk

before 900; Middle English; Old English eolc, eolh; cognate with German Elch (Old High German el(a)ho), Latin alcēs, Greek álkē

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for elk

Contemporary Examples of elk

And, from the south, chronic wasting disease is poised to decimate the elk herds.
What It Takes to Kill a Grizzly Bear
Doug Peacock
November 23, 2014
This means a decline in habitat quality for grazers like bison and elk, whose winter-killed carcasses grizzlies feed upon.
What It Takes to Kill a Grizzly Bear
Doug Peacock
November 23, 2014
Any elk habitat expert, modern hunters as well as biologists, might take a stab at the time required for elk to make that journey.
Incontrovertible Evidence Proves the First Americans Came From Asia
Doug Peacock
March 27, 2014
Either the child was buried at the same time the elk antler tools were made or 400 years later.
Incontrovertible Evidence Proves the First Americans Came From Asia
Doug Peacock
March 27, 2014
That would have meant a fully re-vegetated (that is, lush with elk food) ice-free corridor.
Incontrovertible Evidence Proves the First Americans Came From Asia
Doug Peacock
March 27, 2014

Historical Examples of elk

The elk raised his proud, antlered head and looked in my direction.
A Woman Tenderfoot
Grace Gallatin Seton-Thompson
It was now the season when the Elk were bugling on the mountains.
The Biography of a Grizzly
Ernest Seton-Thompson
He obeyed their directions, and forthwith found himself to be an elk.
The Indian Fairy Book
Cornelius Mathews
I did not act in a foolish or disorderly manner at all, but Tennessee and Elk River were in me.
Memoirs
Charles Godfrey Leland
When Elk saw the earth, he was so joyous, he rolled over and over on the earth.
Myths and Legends of the Great Plains
Unknown

British Dictionary definitions for elk

elk

noun plural elks or elk

a large deer, Alces alces, of N Europe and Asia, having large flattened palmate antlers: also occurs in North America, where it is called a moose
American elk another name for wapiti
a stout pliable waterproof leather made from calfskin or horsehide

Word Origin for elk

Old English eolh; related to Old Norse elgr, Old High German elaho, Latin alcēs, Greek alkē, elaphos deer

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

Word Origin and History for elk

late Old English, from Old Norse elgr or from an alteration of Old English elh, eolh (perhaps via French scribes), or possibly from Middle High German elch (OED's suggestion), all from Proto-Germanic *elkh- (cf. Old High German elaho),

The Germanic words are related to the general word for "deer" in Balto-Slavic (cf. Russian losu, Czech los; also cf. eland), from PIE *olki-, perhaps with reference to the reddish color from root *el- (2) "red, brown" (in animal and tree names); cf. Sanskrit harina- "deer," from hari- "reddish-brown." Greek alke and Latin alces probably are Germanic loan-words. Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks founded N.Y.C. 1868, originally a society of actors and writers.