goanna

American  

[goh-an-uh] / goʊˈæn ə /

noun

1. any of the several large monitor lizards of the family Varanidae, of Australia, especially Varanus varius and V. giganteus, both sometimes growing to 6 feet (1.8 meters).

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goanna British  

/ ɡəʊˈænə /

noun

1. any of various Australian monitor lizards

2. slang a piano

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Etymology

Origin of goanna

First recorded in 1795–1805; aphetic form of iguana

Example Sentences

However, at sites where taste aversion was trialled, goanna populations ranged from 35 per cent to 140 per cent of pre-invasion levels by the time the study finished.

From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2024

"The price today or even in the near term isn't really his focus, the focus is where's the price goanna be in the in the future."

From Reuters • Sep. 14, 2023

I remember looking down its side when it was swinging me around like a dog with a goanna and I noticed my flippers were about half-way down its length.

From The Guardian • Jan. 2, 2019

As a boy, Mr. Rowlands, the park ranger, hunted for “bush tucker” after school, catching wild goanna, the native monitor lizards, and snakes to cook over a pit of hot ash like his Aboriginal ancestors.

From New York Times • Aug. 1, 2016

He ran round to the other side of the hut, and there was a great black goanna in violent convulsions on the ground.

From While the Billy Boils by Lawson, Henry