flying fox

noun

any large fruit bat of the genus Pteropus, of Old World tropical regions, having a foxlike head.
Australian. an aerial conveyor belt or suspended carrier operating on cables, often used to convey ore, dirt, or the like, over rivers and gorges in mining or construction operations.

Origin of flying fox

First recorded in 1750–60

Words Nearby flying fox

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

How to use flying fox in a sentence

Tim also documented the many animals that disperse figs, including hornbills, gibbons, orangutans, and flying foxes.
The Incredible Fig - Issue 104: Harmony | Meg Lowman | July 28, 2021 | Nautilus
Bats are mostly insectivorous; a few are fruit-eaters, such as our common flying-fox.
Natural History of the Mammalia of India and Ceylon | Robert A. Sterndale
Overhead a huge flying fox, with outspread “batty wings” sailed majestically.
Stevenson's Shrine | Laura Stubbs
The flying-fox visited the blossoms of the tea-tree at night, and made an incessant screeching noise.
Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia | Ludwig Leichhardt
Of the Cheiroptera sixteen species have been identified; amongst them is the rousette or flying fox (Pteropus Edwardsii).
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 | Various

Was worshipped in Savaii as a war god, and incarnate in the large bat, or flying-fox.
Samoa, A Hundred Years Ago And Long Before | George Turner

British Dictionary definitions for flying fox

flying fox

noun

any large fruit bat, esp any of the genus Pteropus of tropical Africa and Asia: family Pteropodidae
Australian and NZ a cable mechanism used for transportation across a river, gorge, etc

a cable mechanism ridden for fun at an adventure playground, etc

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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