potto

American  

[pot-oh] / ˈpɒt oʊ /

noun

pottos plural

1. a small arboreal mammal, Perodictus potto, in the loris family, similar in appearance and behavior to the kinkajou and olingo: classified as the sole species in its genus, but its subspecies are significantly varied.

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potto British  

/ ˈpɒtəʊ /

noun

1. a short-tailed prosimian primate, Perodicticus potto, having vertebral spines protruding through the skin in the neck region, native to tropical forests in West and Central Africa: family Lorisidae

2. another name for angwantibo

3. another name for kinkajou

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• pottos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of potto

First recorded in 1760–70; from a Niger-Congo language, perhaps Wolof pata “tailless monkey,” or Twi apɔsɔ “fierce monkeylike animal”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

potto pottos

“I don’t know if it’s true. Eduardo at the bank swears that his brother saw a document with a government seal on it discussing patria potto tad. But who knows?”

From "The Red Umbrella" by Christina Gonzalez

A fowl roasted or boiled, as we eat them in England, is wasted, compared with this delicious guiso de potto which one gets in any rancho in the Banda Orient.

From The Purple Land by Hudson, W. H. (William Henry)

The whole room is pretty dark so you can see these animals that only come out at night, like owls and pottos and cute little vampire bats.

From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel