water buffalo

American  

[waw-ter buhf-uh-loh, wot-er] / ˈwɔ tər ˌbʌf ə loʊ, ˈwɒt ər /

noun

1. a domesticated buffalo, Bubalus bubalis, of tropical Asia, having large, flattened, curved horns.

2. a very large wild buffalo, Bubalus arnee, of the Indian subcontinent and southeast Asia, having large, flattened, curved horns and frequenting swamps and rivers: currently endangered.

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water buffalo British  

noun

1. Also called: Asiatic buffalo.   Indian buffalo.   carabao.  a member of the cattle tribe, Bubalus bubalis, of swampy regions of S Asia, having widely spreading back-curving horns. Domesticated forms are used as draught animals

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Etymology

Origin of water buffalo

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

water buffalo

In the waters of Wilpattu National Park in Sri Lanka, a water buffalo emerges from a swim, its head adorned with a garland of floating weeds.

From BBC ● Feb. 21, 2025

It involved O'Brien getting on the back of a water buffalo, per the request of one of his producers.

From Salon ● Apr. 14, 2024

Pest population management is routinely carried out in Australia for large hooved animals, including deer, pigs, goats, camels and water buffalo.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 8, 2023

Now a taxidermied water buffalo head — the ox — watches from above the bar, while the appellative bull is represented across from it in gleaming metal.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 26, 2023

Those plow animals were the cow, horse, water buffalo, Bali cattle, and yak / cow hybrids.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond