tapir

ta·pir | \ ˈtā-pər also ˈtā-ˌpir or tə-ˈpir

How to pronounce tapir (audio)

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plural tapirs also tapir

Definition of tapir

: any of a genus (Tapirus) of herbivorous chiefly nocturnal perissodactyl mammals of tropical America and southeastern Asia from Myanmar to Sumatra that have a heavy sparsely hairy body and the snout and upper lip prolonged into a short flexible proboscis

Examples of tapir in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web She is memorialized in a salsa song popular among Venezuelans, and a statue of her naked and sitting astride a wild tapir stands in the center-divide of a Caracas highway. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Venezuelans seek strength, healing from mythical goddess," 14 Oct. 2019 More than 4,800 species are endemic -- including giant otters, tapirs and jaguars -- and of more than 11,000 plant species found in the Cerrado, nearly half are found nowhere else on earth, according to the World Wildlife Foundation. — Amy Woodyatt, CNN, "The Amazon burns. But another part of Brazil is being destroyed faster," 22 Sep. 2019 The Gran Chaco, which spans from Bolivia and Brazil to Paraguay and Argentina, is extremely bio-diverse, with more than 3,400 plant and 900 animal species – including quebracho blanco trees, tapirs and jaguars. — Joel E. Correia, The Conversation, "South America’s second-largest forest is also burning – and ‘environmentally friendly’ charcoal is subsidizing its destruction," 2 Oct. 2019 Concentrated in the coastal plains of Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua, these peat forests provide a habitat for rare species such as orangutans, leopards, Sumatran tigers, tapirs, white-winged ducks, and freshwater turtles. — Dennis Normile, Science | AAAS, "Indonesia's fires are bad, but new measures prevented them from becoming worse," 1 Oct. 2019 Ride a longboat down the Tiputini River with an indigenous guide, who will help us spot turtles, tapirs, and caimans bobbing at the water’s surface. — National Geographic, "Ecuador and the Galápagos Expedition: Biodiversity Hotspot," 10 Sep. 2019 Visit the zoo in the morning and discover the national animal of Belize, the tapir; then meet an orphaned jaguar known as Junior Buddy. — National Geographic, "Belize Expedition: Oceans and Underwater Exploration," 10 Sep. 2019 Among the animals that live in the rainforest are some of the world’s rarest and most colorful birds; hundreds of monkey species; giant cats like jaguars and black panthers; and unusual creatures like tapirs and capybaras. — NBC News, "Why is the Amazon rainforest important?," 9 Sep. 2019 The Baird’s tapir resembles a silly cross between a pig and an elephant with a truncated trunk. — Bradley J. Fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "For the Fourth, bring out the (San Diego Zoo) babies!," 3 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tapir.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Tapir.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tapir. Accessed 18 Feb. 2020.

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