timber wolf

American  

noun

1. the gray wolf, Canis lupus, sometimes designated as the subspecies C. lupus occidentalis: formerly common in northern North America but now greatly reduced in number and rare in the conterminous U.S.

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timber wolf British  

noun

1. Also called: grey wolf.  a variety of the wolf, Canis lupus, having a grey brindled coat and occurring in forested northern regions, esp of North America

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Etymology

Origin of timber wolf

First recorded in 1875–80

Compare meaning

How does timber-wolf compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• timber wolf vs. gray wolf

Example Sentences

Fans and students sold 25-cent shares and collected enough money to buy yet another timber wolf in 1966.

From New York Times • Oct. 5, 2014

Back in the 1940s, according to a book by the former professor Bill Beezley, cheerleaders would bring a timber wolf named State to games.

From New York Times • Oct. 5, 2014

It was an American timber wolf named Rugby, filmed in a mock Olympic Village hallway in the United States by the comedian Jimmy Kimmel.

From New York Times • Feb. 25, 2014

Deputy City Game Warden William Kuhn conjectured that the timber wolf prowling the Hudson County marshland had probably entered from Canada last December� in a carload of Christmas trees.

From Time Magazine Archive

A flux of circumstances delivered the Laughing Man’s best friend, his timber wolf, Black Wing, into a physical and intellectual trap set by the Dufarges.

From "Nine Stories" by J. D. Salinger