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gemsbok

[ gemz-bok ]
/ ˈgɛmzˌbɒk /

noun, plural gems·boks, (especially collectively) gems·bok.

a large antelope, Oryx gazella, the largest of the oryxes, found in arid regions of southern Africa, including the Kalahari Desert, having a long black tail and conspicuous black striping on the face and from the chin to the front legs and along each lower flank to the rear legs: despite being widely hunted for their nearly straight horns, which are about 33 inches (84 centimeters) long on the males and slightly longer on the females, gemsbok have a conservation status of least concern.

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Also gems·buck [gemz-buhk] /ˈgɛmzˌbʌk/ .

Origin of gemsbok

First recorded in 1770–80; from Afrikaans, from German Gemsbock “chamois buck, male chamois”; see origin at gems, buck1

Words nearby gemsbok

gemmy, gemology, gemot, gempylid, gems, gemsbok, Gem State, gemstone, gemütlich, Gemütlichkeit, -gen
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for gemsbok

British Dictionary definitions for gemsbok

gemsbok

gemsbuck

/ (ˈɡɛmzˌbʌk) /

noun plural -bok, -boks, -buck or -bucks

Southern African another word for oryx

Word Origin for gemsbok

C18: from Afrikaans, from German Gemsbock, from Gemse chamois + Bock buck 1
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