oryx

[ awr-iks, ohr- ]

/ ˈɔr ɪks, ˈoʊr- /

noun, plural o·ryx·es, (especially collectively) o·ryx.

a large African antelope, Oryx gazella, grayish with black markings and having long, nearly straight horns: an endangered species.

gemsbok.

Nearby words

orville, orwell, orwell, george, orwellian, oryol, oryx, orzo, os, os coccygis, os coxae, os intermetatarseum

Origin of oryx

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin < Greek óryx pickax, oryx

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for oryx

If it is a young man, they should start with Oryx and Crake.
How I Write: Margaret Atwood|Noah Charney|October 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Strepsiceros capensis (Agazin), and Oryx capensis (Sala), are hunted on the borders of the desert.
The Highlands of Ethiopia|William Cornwallis Harris
Of course the oryx were also brought up to the camp to be skinned and cut up.
The Young Yagers|Mayne Reid
Only before us we could see the stripes of trotting zebra disappearing; and catch the glint of light on the bayonets of the oryx.
The Land of Footprints|Stewart Edward White

Harris has given much better arguments in favour of the unicorn being merely a species of oryx.
Mythical Monsters|Charles Gould
To his vast delight, von Hofe's oryx bounded high and fell dead; it was found that both bullets had gone through the heart.
The Rogue Elephant|Elliott Whitney

British Dictionary definitions for oryx

oryx

/ (ˈɒrɪks) /

noun plural -yxes or -yx

any large African antelope of the genus Oryx, typically having long straight nearly upright horns

Word Origin for oryx

C14: via Latin from Greek orux stonemason's axe, used also of the pointed horns of an antelope

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 oryx

oryx

late 14c., from Latin oryx, from Greek oryx (genitive orygos) "North African antelope with pointed horns, the digging animal," literally "pick-axe." Used in Greek and Latin bibles to render Hebrew tho, which early English Bibles misidentified as everything from a small hibernating animal to a wild bull.