ground sloth

American  

noun

1. any of various extinct large, edentate mammals from the Pleistocene Epoch of North and South America resembling modern sloths but living on the ground rather than in trees.

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Etymology

Origin of ground sloth

First recorded in 1855–60

Example Sentences

This popularity has led many other versions of Megalonyx jeffersonii to appear across digital media and pop culture throughout the past century, most notably in the "Ice Age" films as Sid the ground sloth.

From Science Daily • Mar. 26, 2024

In contrast, fossil trackways preserved in dried lake beds in Nevada and New Mexico show ground sloth footprints with all four feet on the ground.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 15, 2023

No fossil evidence suggests that a giant ground sloth ever composed a symphony or that a Devonian fish split the atom even once.

From New York Times • Apr. 25, 2022

And, Greely says, “Personally, I would love to see a giant ground sloth or an saber-toothed cat!”

From Science Magazine • Mar. 9, 2022

They overestimated its size by a factor of six and gave it frightening claws, which in fact came from a Megalonyx, or giant ground sloth, found nearby.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson