elephant

noun

el·​e·​phant ˈe-lə-fənt 

plural elephants also elephant

often attributive

1

a

: a thickset, usually extremely large, nearly hairless, herbivorous mammal (family Elephantidae, the elephant family) that has a snout elongated into a muscular trunk and two incisors in the upper jaw developed especially in the male into long ivory tusks:

(1)

: a tall, large-eared mammal (Loxodonta africana) of tropical Africa that is sometimes considered to comprise two separate species (L. africana of sub-Saharan savannas and L. cyclotis of central and western rainforests)

called also African elephant

(2)

: a relatively small-eared mammal (Elephas maximus) of forests of southeastern Asia

called also Asian elephant, Indian elephant

b

: any of various extinct relatives of the elephant see mammoth, mastodon

2

: one that is uncommonly large or hard to manage see also elephant in the room

Illustration of elephant

• 1 African
• 2 Asian

Synonyms

• whale
• giant
• dinosaur
• monster
• mammoth

Examples of elephant in a Sentence

by any standard, the new shopping mall will be an elephant and one that is certain to alter the retail landscape

Recent Examples on the Web

This finding raises the possibility that mammoths, as close relatives of modern elephants, might have been susceptible to similar infections. —Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2025

The president also places calls to the First Lady (Renée Elise Goldsberry), in Kenya as part of an elephant conservation program. —David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2025

In a now-viral video from August 10, an elephant chases and nearly tramples a tourist on the highways of Bandipur National Park, known for its nature walks, birdwatching and wildlife safaris, in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. —Kamala Thiagarajan, NPR, 31 Aug. 2025

The hotel’s 54 rooms are colored with warm rusts, whites and charcoals and have elephant door knockers, and the property will spotlight art the reflects the Colorado scenery. —Jennifer Kester, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French olifant, elefant, from L. elephantus, from Greek elephant-, elephas

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing elephant

• African elephant
• Asian elephant
• Asiatic elephant
• elephant bird
• elephant garlic
• elephant grass
• elephant in the room
• elephant seal
• elephant's ear
• Indian elephant
• rogue elephant
• white elephant

Kids Definition

elephant

noun

el·​e·​phant ˈel-ə-fənt 

: any of a family of huge thickset nearly hairless mammals that have the snout lengthened into a trunk and two incisors in the upper jaw developed into long outward-curving pointed ivory tusks and that include two living forms:

a

: one with large ears that occurs in tropical Africa

b

: one with relatively small ears that occurs in forests of southeastern Asia