emperor penguin

American  

noun

1. the largest of the penguins, Aptenodytes forsteri, of the coasts of Antarctica, having bluish-gray and black plumage on the back, head, and wings, a white chest, and a patch of orange on each side of the neck.

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emperor penguin British  

noun

1. an Antarctic penguin, Aptenodytes forsteri, with orange-yellow patches on the neck: the largest penguin, reaching a height of 1.3 m (4 ft)

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Etymology

Origin of emperor penguin

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

emperor penguin

Mr Gregory captured a group of fledgling emperor penguin chicks teetering on the edge of an ice shelf.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2025

It is now highly probable that most emperor penguin colony locations have been detected, with about half having been detected with satellite imagery, according to the paper.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 13, 2024

Between 2018 and 2022, 30% of emperor penguin colonies in Antarctica were displaced by polar ice loss.

From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2023

The continent is just beginning to emerge from its long polar night, when emperor penguin colonies aren’t visible in the darkness to satellites.

From New York Times ● Aug. 24, 2023

They became almost frenzied when a solemn-looking emperor penguin inspected them gravely from some point of vantage on the floe and gave utterance to an apparently derisive “Knark!”

From South: the story of Shackleton's 1914-1917 expedition by Shackleton, Ernest Henry, Sir