wallaby

American  

[wol-uh-bee] / ˈwɒl ə bi /

noun

plural

wallabies,

plural

wallaby

1. any of various small and medium-sized kangaroos of the genera Macropus, Thylogale, Petrogale, etc., some of which are no larger than rabbits: several species are endangered.

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wallaby ¹ British  

/ ˈwɒləbɪ /

noun

1. any of various herbivorous marsupials of the genera Lagorchestes ( hare wallabies ), Petrogale ( rock wallabies ), Protemnodon, etc, of Australia and New Guinea, similar to but smaller than kangaroos: family Macropodidae

2. slang (of a person) wandering about looking for work

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Wallaby ² British  

/ ˈwɒləbɪ /

noun

1. a member of the international Rugby Union football team of Australia

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Etymology

Origin of wallaby

First recorded in 1790–1800, wallaby is from the Dharuk word wa-la-ba

Compare meaning

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

• wallaby vs. kangaroo

Example Sentences

To explore how these massive animals moved, Megan Jones and her colleagues examined the hindlimbs of 94 modern specimens and 40 fossil specimens representing 63 species of kangaroos and wallabies.

From Science Daily

A white wallaby has been rescued and reunited with its owner after being found on the side of a road in Kent.

From BBC

And last year, the Tasmanian tourist board posted "adverts" for jobs including wallaby walker and paranormal investigator, in a bid to encourage more tourism to the island during the off-season.

From BBC

A wallaby hastily bounds towards sparse gum trees.

From BBC

Large marsupials like kangaroos and wallabies tended to avoid burrows, unless they had been flooded with rainwater; then they used them as watering holes.

From New York Times