gator
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of gator
An Americanism dating back to 1835–45; shortened form
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"I can say with confidence that I won't meet another gator like Claude in my lifetime. I'll miss him terribly," Krol said.
From BBC ● Jan. 19, 2026
The AI tool shares its name, Claude, with a 30-year-old albino gator that’s become a local celebrity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2025
‘Happy Gilmore’ star Adam Sandler shares a playful tribute honoring his reptilian co-star, Morris the alligator, who died Sunday of old age at a gator farm in southern Colorado.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2025
The gator, estimated to be 6 feet long, was corralled by responding Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission personnel.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 1, 2023
Luckily the gator didn’t seem particularly interested in them.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
Florida has about 1.3 million alligators, and it is a crime to kill them, although the state euthanizes some 7,000 gators a year to reduce the risk of attacks on humans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
The tourists couldn’t believe they were out in the wild with the gators; they crouched down and posed for selfies next to them.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2025
He has also shown gators kept in captivity in presentations to school groups and Boy Scout troops.
From Seattle Times ● May 1, 2024
Jennifer Dean told 10 Tampa Bay: "It's crazy. My kids walk by there all the time. So it's really scary. I've seen four or five-feet gators but nothing that big."
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2023
“Sometimes the gators are fast and sometimes they are slow.”
From "Copper Sun" by Sharon M. Draper
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
