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koala

[koh-ah-luh]
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noun
  1. a sluggish, tailless, gray, furry, arboreal marsupial, Phascolarctos cinereus, of Australia.
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Origin of koala

1800–10; erroneous spelling for earlier koola(h) (now obsolete) < Dharuk gú-la
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for koala

Historical Examples

  • In the Wombat and Koala the tail is small and without chevron bones.

    The Vertebrate Skeleton

    Sidney H. Reynolds

  • The Phascolarctos, or Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), is closely allied to the wombat.

    The Desert World

    Arthur Mangin

  • The Brisbane savant obtained the worm from a koala (Phascolarctos cinereus).

    Parasites

    T. Spencer Cobbold

  • She forgot all about the Koala, and rushed forward to meet it.

    Dot and the Kangaroo

    Ethel C. Pedley

  • The Koala was evidently very pleased with this accomplishment.

    Dot and the Kangaroo

    Ethel C. Pedley

British Dictionary definitions for koala

koala

koala bear

noun
  1. a slow-moving Australian arboreal marsupial, Phascolarctus cinereus, having dense greyish fur and feeding on eucalyptus leaves and barkAlso called (Austral): native bear
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Word Origin

from a native Australian language
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

Word Origin and History for koala

n.

Australian marsupial, 1808, from the Aboriginal name of the animal, variously given as koola, kulla, kula.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper