serval

[ sur-vuhl ]

/ ˈsɜr vəl /

Save This Word!

noun, plural ser·vals, (especially collectively) ser·val.

a long-limbed, nocturnal African cat, Felis serval, about the size of a bobcat, having a tawny coat spotted with black: now rare in many former habitats.

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of serval

1765–75; <New Latin <Portuguese (lobo) cerval lynx, literally, staglike (wolf) <Late Latin cervālis deerlike, equivalent to Latin cerv(us) stag + -ālis-al¹

Words nearby serval

serum albumin, serum globulin, serum hepatitis, serum sickness, serv., serval, servant, servant church, serve, serve a purpose, serve one right

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use serval in a sentence

Among them was that of a leopard, an ant bear, and a serval cat.
The Forest of Mystery|James H. Foster
The Serval is a spotted cat—black upon a pale-yellowish ground—and considerably larger than the domestic species.
Quadrupeds, What They Are and Where Found|Mayne Reid
With a convulsive wriggle the serval made a last attempt to bury its fangs in its victim's neck.
Samba|Herbert Strang
There is the small serval of Africa, and the ocelot, all too well known to need a description.
Cats|W. Gordon Stables

Till one day there came a leopard and fought with the serval and killed him.
Black Tales for White Children|C. H. Stigand

British Dictionary definitions for serval

serval

/ (ˈsɜːvəl) /

noun plural -vals or -val

a slender feline mammal, Felis serval, of the African bush, having an orange-brown coat with black spots, large ears, and long legs

Word Origin for serval

C18: via French from Late Latin cervālis staglike, from Latin cervus a stag

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