panda

noun

pan·​da ˈpan-də 

1

: red panda

2

: a large black-and-white mammal (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) of chiefly central China that feeds primarily on bamboo shoots and is now usually classified with the bears (family Ursidae)

called also giant panda

Illustration of panda

• A red panda
• B panda 2

Examples of panda in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Fewer than 2,000 pandas survive in the wild, limited to mountainous regions in Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. —Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 8 Dec. 2025

Bringing giant pandas back from the brink of extinction has been a priority for scientists, especially in recent years, and learning how to keep baby pandas alive has been a big part of their quest to successfully do that. —CBS News, 7 Dec. 2025

On Saturday morning, an employee at the Ashland, Virginia-area liquor store found the trash panda passed out on the bathroom floor at the end of his drunken escapade. —Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 5 Dec. 2025

Hey, pandas are bears and so are polar bears, right? —Emma Specter, Vogue, 5 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French, perhaps from a language of the southeast Himalayas

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing panda

• giant panda
• lesser panda
• panda car
• red panda

Rhymes for panda

• banda
• ganda
• vanda
• aranda
• miranda
• veranda
• verandah
• jacaranda
• memoranda
• propaganda

Kids Definition

panda

noun

pan·​da ˈpan-də 

1

: red panda

2

: a large black and white mammal of chiefly central China that feeds primarily on bamboo shoots and is now usually considered to be closely related to the bears

called also giant panda