Illustration of tiger
- tiger 1a
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
J. A. Davenport3
British
: a groom in livery
tigerishly
adverb
tigerishness
noun
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 on the Web
The tiger snakes of Perth have heavy metals in their livers.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 22 Nov. 2023
Featuring 24 gemstones, including amethyst, quartz, tiger’s eye, and Dalmatian jasper, this advent calendar is an interactive way to start your very own crystal collection.
—Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 18 Nov. 2023
The bacterium had previously been found in tiger and lion bite wounds in humans, a chipmunk and healthy captive parrots, according to the study.
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Nov. 2023
The red-roomed supper club's pianist was joined by the band, where ringmasters, cotton candy vendors, caged plush tigers, models on stilt walkers, balloon-animal artists, and plate-spinning clowns reveled into the wee hours.
—Vogue, 28 Oct. 2023
Originally worn on the runway by Kate Moss, the look was styled for the show with a matching tiger print fedora and raffia top handle bag.
—Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 6 Nov. 2023
Leopards, tigers and wolves are frequent antagonists in regional folklore.
—Athena Aktipis, Scientific American, 1 Nov. 2023
Justin Timberlake, Jessica Biel and their son embarked on an adventure through their town dressed as the cutest (oversized) creatures from the singer's DreamWorks film on Halloween in 2020.
37 of 51
Kim Kardashian's Tiger King Costume
No lions or bears, just tigers...
—Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 30 Oct. 2023
The clip jumps between party clips and each of the rappers as kids on dates: Lil Baby takes a girl out for juice, nuggets, and fries, Future surprises his girl with a pet tiger, and Lil Uzi trims a hedge into a dog shape.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2023
See More
Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 22 Nov. 2023
Featuring 24 gemstones, including amethyst, quartz, tiger’s eye, and Dalmatian jasper, this advent calendar is an interactive way to start your very own crystal collection.
—Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 18 Nov. 2023
The bacterium had previously been found in tiger and lion bite wounds in humans, a chipmunk and healthy captive parrots, according to the study.
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Nov. 2023
The red-roomed supper club's pianist was joined by the band, where ringmasters, cotton candy vendors, caged plush tigers, models on stilt walkers, balloon-animal artists, and plate-spinning clowns reveled into the wee hours.
—Vogue, 28 Oct. 2023
Originally worn on the runway by Kate Moss, the look was styled for the show with a matching tiger print fedora and raffia top handle bag.
—Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 6 Nov. 2023
Leopards, tigers and wolves are frequent antagonists in regional folklore.
—Athena Aktipis, Scientific American, 1 Nov. 2023
Justin Timberlake, Jessica Biel and their son embarked on an adventure through their town dressed as the cutest (oversized) creatures from the singer's DreamWorks film on Halloween in 2020.
37 of 51
Kim Kardashian's Tiger King Costume
No lions or bears, just tigers...
—Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 30 Oct. 2023
The clip jumps between party clips and each of the rappers as kids on dates: Lil Baby takes a girl out for juice, nuggets, and fries, Future surprises his girl with a pet tiger, and Lil Uzi trims a hedge into a dog shape.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tiger.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
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
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Time Traveler
The first known use of tiger was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing tiger
Dictionary Entries Near tiger
Cite this Entry
“Tiger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tiger. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
tiger
noun
ti·ger
ˈtī-gər 
plural tigers also tiger
1
: a large Asian flesh-eating mammal of the same family as the domestic cat with a coat that is typically light brown to orange with mostly vertical black stripes
2
: any of several large wildcats (as the jaguar or cougar)
3
: a domestic cat with a striped coat
More from Merriam-Webster on tiger
Nglish: Translation of tiger for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of tiger for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about tiger
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