gavial
Britishnoun
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a large fish-eating Indian crocodilian, Gavialis gangeticus, with a very long slender snout: family Gavialidae
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a SE Asian crocodile, Tomistoma schlegeli, similar to but smaller than the gavial
Etymology
Origin of gavial
C19: from French, from Hindi ghariyāl
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.
The only non-caiman was a gavial resembling modern ones in India, with a long, thin snout for fish-catching.
From Reuters ● Feb. 24, 2015
A keen craving for animal food had grown upon them, and they were not without some regretful thoughts at having permitted the dead gavial to drift out to sea.
From The Castaways by Pearse, Lolbran
A true crocodile, also, Crocodilus toliapicus, and another saurian more nearly allied to the gavial, accompany the above fossils; also the relics of several birds and quadrupeds.
From The Student's Elements of Geology by Lyell, Charles, Sir
The gavial is found in Asia—particularly in the Ganges and other Indian rivers, and is the crocodile of those parts.
From The Boy Hunters by Unknown
Alligators are found in most of the rivers, and the gavial is less frequently met with.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 3 "Borgia, Lucrezia" to "Bradford, John" by Various
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.
