oryx

noun

ˈȯr-iks 

ˈär-

plural oryx or oryxes

: any of a small genus (Oryx) of large heavily built African and Arabian antelopes that have a light-colored coat with dark conspicuous markings especially on the face compare gemsbok

Illustration of oryx

Examples of oryx in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In a country of elephants, oryxes, and giraffes, which loom so large in tourists’ minds, Siggy is in love with the smallest of beings. —Sara Miller Llana, The Christian Science Monitor, 12 June 2024

The oryx went extinct in the wild during the 1990s. —Gabe Allen, Discover Magazine, 30 Dec. 2023

Those species include our own California condor, our black-footed ferret, and our Guam rail, as well as the Arabian oryx, the Przewalski’s horse, and the Père David’s deer. —Jared Diamond, Discover Magazine, 11 Nov. 2019

Still, Reed says there’s an effort to reintroduce the dama gazelle to Chad as part of a larger plan that also involves the oryx and addax, also part of the antelope family. —Lee Powell, Washington Post, 17 Nov. 2023

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Latin, a gazelle, from Greek, pickax, antelope, kind of whale, from oryssein to dig; akin to Latin runcare to grub up, weed, Sanskrit luñcati he plucks

First Known Use

1535, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

oryx

noun

ˈōr-iks 

ˈȯr-,

ˈär-

plural oryx or oryxes

: any of several African antelopes having long horns that are straight or that curve backward