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tiger

American  
[tahy-ger] / ˈtaɪ gər /

noun

plural

tigers, tiger

  1. a large, carnivorous, tawny-colored and black-striped feline, Panthera tigris, of Asia, ranging in several subspecies from India and the Malay Peninsula to Siberia: the entire species is endangered, with some subspecies thought to be extinct.

  2. the cougar, jaguar, thylacine, or other animal resembling the tiger.

  3. a person resembling a tiger in fierceness, courage, etc.

  4. a country that is considered to have a tiger economy.

    Taiwan is one of the four Asian tigers.

  5. an additional cheer (often the wordtiger ) at the end of a round of cheering.

  6. any of several strong, voracious fishes, as a sand shark.

  7. any of numerous animals with stripes similar to a tiger's.

adjective

  1. noting or relating to a strict parenting style that demands academic excellence and obedience from children, associated especially with East Asians.

    a tiger mom; tiger parenting.
tiger 1 British  
/ ˈtaɪɡə /

noun

  1. a large feline mammal, Panthera tigris, of forests in most of Asia, having a tawny yellow coat with black stripes

  2. (not in technical use) any of various other animals, such as the jaguar, leopard, and thylacine

  3. a dynamic, forceful, or cruel person

    1. a country, esp in E Asia, that is achieving rapid economic growth

    2. ( as modifier )

      a tiger economy

  5. archaic a servant in livery, esp a page or groom

  6. short for tiger moth

  7. slang a ten-rand note

  8. informal to find oneself in a situation that has turned out to be much more difficult to control than one had expected

"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
Tiger 2 British  
/ ˈtaɪɡə /

noun

  1. See TIGR

"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

Other Word Forms

  • tiger-like adjective
  • tigerish adjective
  • tigerishly adverb
  • tigerishness noun
  • tigerlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of tiger

before 1000; Middle English tigre, Old English tīgras (plural) < Latin tīgris, tigris < Greek tígris

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Anderson asked him if would play a karate instructor and sent him a photo of a tiger... in a martial arts kimono.

From Barron's • Mar. 9, 2026

That pressure may help create dramatic surface features such as the long fractures known as the "tiger stripes" on Enceladus.

From Science Daily • Mar. 2, 2026

Emojis, Disney characters, cigarettes and more pile up in humorous scenes that include a saber-toothed tiger driving a dune buggy and a pair of corvids fighting over a worm.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026

Our son’s jacket had a roaring tiger stitched onto the back and was layered over his toddler-size tuxedo T-shirt.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 22, 2025

I take a hesitant step in her direction like I’m approaching a tiger.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.