tiger

noun ti·ger \ ˈtī-gər \

Updated on: 20 Apr 2018

Definition of tiger

plural tigers

1 plural also tiger

a : a large Asian carnivorous mammal (Panthera tigris) of the cat family having a usually tawny coat transversely striped with black

b : any of several large wildcats (such as the jaguar or cougar)

c : a domestic cat with striped pattern

d Australia : tasmanian tiger

2 a : a fierce, daring, or aggressive person or quality

aroused the tiger in him

a tiger for work

b : someone or something (such as a situation) that is formidable or impossible to control

how the tiger of inflation can be tamed
—J. A. Davenport

—often used in the phrases ride a tiger and have a tiger by the tail

3 British : a groom in livery

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tigerish

play \ˈtī-g(ə-)rish\ adjective

—

tigerishly

adverb

—

tigerishness

noun

—

tigerlike

play \ˈtī-gər-ˌlīk\ adjective

See tiger defined for English-language learners

See tiger defined for kids

Examples of tiger in a Sentence

He was a tiger on the basketball court.
even the best defense can't keep that tiger from scoring

Recent Examples of tiger from the Web

For the latest iteration, Ray has teamed up with jewelry designer Pamela Love to create three distinct bag styles that feature piercing-like hardware made from semiprecious stones including tiger’s eye, malachite, turquoise, and lapis.

— brooke bobb, Vogue, "Pamela Love Teams Up With Hobo for a Limited Edition Line of Punkish Bags," 16 Apr. 2018
Time to train self-driving on tiger images—and update.

— aarian marshall, WIRED, "The Never-Ending Self-Driving Car Project," 8 Apr. 2018
Distemper often affects dogs (evidence has even been seen in the remains of a 14,000-year-old puppy), but the virus can also infect wild animals, like foxes, wolves, coyotes, tigers—and raccoons.

— brigit katz, Smithsonian, "‘Zombie-Like’ Raccoons Are Terrorizing Youngstown, Ohio," 6 Apr. 2018
Centennial Lake is home to six fish species, including trout, bass, catfish, bluegill, tiger muskies and crappies.

— kate magill, Columbia Flier, "Angling for a good fish story at Howard's 'Nite Bite'," 6 Apr. 2018
As recently as 2013, Zoo Boise had three tigers on its premises.

— michael katz, idahostatesman, "Zoo Boise’s last tiger died Tuesday. It was ‘a sad day for everyone.’ | Idaho Statesman," 13 Mar. 2018
Tarzan lived in Africa but wrestled Asian tigers all the time; why shouldn’t T’Challa rule a kingdom with an Indian name?

— peter manseau, Washington Post, "The surprising religious backstory of ‘Black Panther’s’ Wakanda," 7 Mar. 2018
One walked in a bright orange suit and another in a hipster plaid purple jacket with a tiger print back collar.

— leanne italie, The Seattle Times, "Italy’s Bottega Veneta comes to New York Fashion Week," 9 Feb. 2018
One of the priorities for me was to make Celeste, her mother, not a tiger mom.

— allie briggs, refinery29.com, "If You've Ever Been In A Texting Relationship, This Novel Is For You," 28 Mar. 2018

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

Illustration of tiger

Origin and Etymology of tiger

Middle English tigre, from Old English tiger & Anglo-French tigre, both from Latin tigris, from Greek, probably of Iranian origin; akin to Avestan tighra- pointed; akin to Greek stizein to tattoo — more at stick

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

tiger Synonyms

TIGER Defined for English Language Learners

tiger

noun

Definition of tiger for English Language Learners

: a large, wild cat that has a coat of usually yellow or orange fur and black stripes and that lives in Asia
: a striped cat that lives with people
: a person who is very fierce or aggressive