kangaroo

kan·ga·roo

noun \ˌkaŋ-gə-ˈrü\

plural kan·ga·roos

Definition of KANGAROO

: any of various herbivorous leaping marsupial mammals (family Macropodidae) of Australia, New Guinea, and adjacent islands with a small head, large ears, long powerful hind legs, a long thick tail used as a support and in balancing, and rather small forelegs not used in locomotion

Illustration of KANGAROO

Origin of KANGAROO

Guugu Yimidhirr (Australian aboriginal language of northern Queensland) gaŋurru

First Known Use: 1770

Rhymes with KANGAROO

aperçu, avenue, babassu, baby blue, ballyhoo, barbecue, billet-doux, bird's-eye view, black-and-blue, buckaroo, bugaboo, callaloo, caribou, catechu, clerihew, cobalt blue, cockapoo, cockatoo, Cotonou, counterview, curlicue, déjà vu, derring-do, detinue, feverfew, follow-through, gardyloo, hitherto, honeydew, ingenue, interview, IOU, Irish stew, jabiru, Jiangsu, Kathmandu, kinkajou, loup-garou, Makalu, manitou, marabou, McAdoo, microbrew, midnight blue, Montague, Montesquieu, Mountain View, ormolu, overdo, overdue, overshoe, overstrew, overview, parvenu, parvenue, pas de deux, passe-partout, pay-per-view, PDQ, peacock blue, peekaboo, peer review, petting zoo, Pompidou, Port Salut, rendezvous, residue, retinue, revenue, Roh Tae Woo, seppuku, Shikoku, sneak preview, succès fou, switcheroo, talking-to, teleview, Telugu, thereunto, thirty-two, thitherto, Timbuktu, tinamou, twenty-two, view halloo, vindaloo, w, wallaroo, waterloo, well-to-do, what have you, whoop-de-do, witches' brew, Xanadu

kangaroo

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Western gray kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus).—Warren Garst/Tom Stack and Associates

Most specifically, any of six large Australasian marsupials of the family Macropodidae. The term is also used to refer to any of the family's 54 species. Most kangaroos graze on the Australian plains, but tree kangaroos are arboreal; they climb trees and leap from branch to branch. Kangaroos generally have long, powerful hind legs and feet and a long tail, thickened at the base. The hind legs enable their spectacular leaps and are also useful for self-defense; the tail is used for balance. The head is small, the ears large and rounded, and the fur soft and woolly. Females have one young (called a joey) annually; it is suckled in its mother's pouch for six months and often returns to be carried in the pouch later as well. The gray kangaroo, the best-known and second-largest species, can leap more than 30 ft (9 m). The red kangaroo is the largest species; the male may stand 6 ft (1.8 m) tall and weigh 200 lbs (90 kg). Millions are killed annually for their meat and hides and because they compete with livestock for forage. See also wallaby; wallaroo.