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

Professor England warned that emperor penguin populations are facing greater extinction risks because their chicks depend on stable sea ice to mature.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2025

Left to fend for themselves, emperor penguin chicks must eventually take a leap into the icy ocean for their first attempt at feeding.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2025

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

From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2023

Four out of five emperor penguin colonies in Antarctica’s Bellingshausen Sea region very likely lost their chicks late last year because of disappearing sea ice underneath their breeding grounds, according to a new study.

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