okapi

American  

[oh-kah-pee] / oʊˈkɑ pi /

noun

okapis plural

1. an African mammal, Okapia johnstoni, closely related to and resembling the giraffe, but smaller and with a much shorter neck.

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okapi British  

/ əʊˈkɑːpɪ /

noun

1. a ruminant mammal, Okapia johnstoni, of the forests of central Africa, having a reddish-brown coat with horizontal white stripes on the legs and small horns: family Giraffidae

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• okapis
  plural
• okapi
  plural

Etymology

Origin of okapi

1900; < Bambuba (Mvu’ba), a Central Sudanic language of the NE Democratic Republic of the Congo (or < a related Pygmy dial.), according to English Africanist Harry Johnston (1858–1927), author of the first zoological descriptions of the animal

Example Sentences

Similar sentiments were echoed by the president of the civil society of Gungu, who said the museum was the "pride" of the area, according to DR Congo's Radio Okapi.

From BBC • Nov. 5, 2021

Performing solo with Okapi and Requiem on Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. at Rhizome, 6950 Maple St. NW. rhizomedc.org. $5-$20.

From Washington Post • Nov. 2, 2021

Menas also voiced the nonbinary character Odee the Okapi in one episode of DreamWorks’ “Madagascar: A Little Wild.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 2, 2021

Bruce Goldfarb, president of proxy solicitor Okapi Partners LLC, said he expected the changes would only have a marginal impact.

From Reuters • Oct. 7, 2021

They obeyed him, and he, kneeling on the aft-deck between the two levers, grasped one in either hand, and got more speed out of the Okapi than they had by their united efforts.

From In Search of the Okapi A Story of Adventure in Central Africa by Glanville, Ernest