bison

noun

bi·​son ˈbī-sᵊn  -zᵊn 

plural bison

: any of several large living or extinct bovine mammals (genus Bison) that have a long, broad head, short, hollow horns, heavy forequarters, a large muscular hump across the shoulders, and a shaggy mane on the head and lower neck and that typically live and migrate in herds: such as

a

: american bison

b

: european bison

bisontine

ˈbī-sᵊn-ˌtīn 

-zᵊn-

adjective

Examples of bison in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The mass slaughter of the American bison during the 1870s and 1880s was unprecedented. — Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 20 July 2026

Test your news knowledge with this week's Fox News Digital News Quiz, featuring acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's confirmation hearing and a raging Yellostone National Park bison. — Staff, FOXNews.com, 17 July 2026

Aside from simply driving through Yellowstone, taking in the sights on foot resulted in 15 deaths through accidental falls, exposure, unexpected medical issues, and run-ins with animals like bison or bears. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 16 July 2026

At Three Forks, where the Madison meets the Jefferson and Gallatin to form the Missouri, Native Americans used the nearby limestone cliffs for bison drives 2,000 years before Lewis and Clark arrived to give the rivers their current names. — Condé Nast Traveler, 14 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin bisont-, bison, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German wisant aurochs; akin to Old Prussian wissambrs aurochs

First Known Use

circa 1611, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing bison

• American bison
• European bison
• plains bison
• wood bison

Rhymes for bison

• seisin
• actinomycin
• adriamycin
• aureomycin
• azithromycin
• clarithromycin
• erythromycin
• bleomycin
• clindamycin
• kanamycin
• lincomycin
• mitomycin

Kids Definition

bison

noun

bi·​son ˈbīs-ᵊn  ˈbīz- 

plural bison

: any of several large shaggy-maned mammals related to the ox with a large head, short horns, and a large fleshy hump above the shoulders

especially : buffalo sense c