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
In March, a second trailer brought He-Man back to Eternia and reunited him with Man-at-Arms and Teela—as well as with the talking tiger, Cringer (who can transform into Battlecat).
—ArsTechnica, 20 May 2026
The tiger was one of eight housed at her enclosure, according to local media.
—Frank Andrews, CBS News, 18 May 2026
The company still sells its classic animal crackers today, featuring shapes such as elephants, lions, camels, bears and tigers.
—Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 17 May 2026
Bum-seok listens impatiently to their second-hand accounts of tiger tracks being sighted in the mountains, leading them to assume the animal must have wandered all the way down from Siberia.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for tiger
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ArsTechnica, 20 May 2026
The tiger was one of eight housed at her enclosure, according to local media.
—Frank Andrews, CBS News, 18 May 2026
The company still sells its classic animal crackers today, featuring shapes such as elephants, lions, camels, bears and tigers.
—Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 17 May 2026
Bum-seok listens impatiently to their second-hand accounts of tiger tracks being sighted in the mountains, leading them to assume the animal must have wandered all the way down from Siberia.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for tiger
Cite this Entry
“Tiger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tiger. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids 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
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