gibbon

noun

gib·​bon ˈgi-bən How to pronounce gibbon (audio)
: any of a family (Hylobatidae) of agile brachiating tailless apes of southeastern Asia that are the smallest and most arboreal anthropoid apes

Illustration of gibbon

Illustration of gibbon

Examples of gibbon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The stipulation ended about two and a half years ago, Fisher said, and the zoo now has about 35 monkeys, ranging from larger white-handed gibbons to pygmy marmosets, one of the smallest monkey species. Lillian Ashworth, Oc Register, 18 July 2025 As the day turned to evening, echoes of a gibbon’s howl from the nearby Cincinnati Zoo would sometimes punctuate the festivities. Noel Burgess, Forbes.com, 15 July 2025 The other co-defendant, Jason Clay, was found to have illegally sold a chimpanzee to Antle in exchange for $200,000 in cash and a juvenile gibbon. Ryan Coleman Published, EW.com, 9 July 2025 The yellow-cheeked gibbon, described as an independent endangered primate species in 2010, has only been found in a few forests in Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, and is now confirmed in the national park. Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 22 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for gibbon

Word History

Etymology

French

First Known Use

1774, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of gibbon was in 1774

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Gibbon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gibbon. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

gibbon

noun
gib·​bon ˈgib-ən How to pronounce gibbon (audio)
: any of several tailless apes of southeastern Asia that are smaller and spend more time in trees than the gorilla, chimpanzee, and orangutan

Biographical Definition

Gibbon

biographical name

Gib·​bon ˈgi-bən How to pronounce Gibbon (audio)
Edward 1737–1794 English historian
Gibbonesque adjective
or Gibbonian

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