giraffe
Americannoun
-
a tall, long-necked, spotted ruminant, Giraffa camelopardalis, of Africa: the tallest living quadruped animal.
-
Astronomy. Giraffe, the constellation Camelopardalis.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of giraffe
First recorded in 1585–95; from French girafe, from Italian giraffa, from dialectal Arabic zirāfah; further origin uncertain
Explanation
A giraffe is an extremely tall animal with a very long neck. You can't miss the giraffes at the zoo, because they tower above all the other animals. Giraffes are the tallest living animals on land, the very largest of them being three times taller than an average human. The name giraffe can be traced back to the Arabic zarafa and is thought to be rooted in an African language. An earlier English name for these African ungulates was camelopard, from their similarities to camels (four legs, long neck) and leopards (spots).
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:
On the lam in Texas: Gracie the giraffe.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 25, 2026
As the animal grew from dog sized to horse sized to giraffe sized and eventually to enormous proportions, its place in the ecosystem shifted at each stage.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 27, 2026
They also have English Staffordshire porcelain dog and giraffe figurines, vintage British and French Majolica plates, and lamps and rugs they found on Etsy, EBay and at auctions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026
A tall, slender Riesling magnum is the giraffe of the wine world: striking and exotic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 22, 2025
“She’s an emu-raffe, which is a bit like a donkey and a giraffe put together, only with fewer legs and a peevish temper. She’s a terrible sore loser at cards,” he added in a whisper.
From "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs
There are currently nine female Nubian giraffes at Longleat, all of whom were born at the park.
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026
A puma named Muluk seemed sure that South Korea will triumph against the Czech Republic, and six giraffes hedged their bets with the Democratic Republic of Congo over Colombia.
From Barron's ● Jun. 6, 2026
He then proceeded to pitch me an animated children’s show about singing giraffes.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
Patterns resembling Voronoi diagrams can often be seen in nature, including the markings on giraffes.
From Science Daily ● May 14, 2026
Two multicolored giraffes greeted customers at the entrance of the restaurant, making an arch as you walked through the French double doors.
From "The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora" by Pablo Cartaya
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.
