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 life expectancy of tigers in captivity can be up to 20 years, while tigers in the wild usually live between 10 and 15 years.
—Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2026
The Oakland Zoo rescued Mia and another tiger named Lola from a roadside zoo in Oklahoma in 2022.
—Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 19 Mar. 2026
The film has nods to traditional Korean folk painting in the characters of Derpy, a blue florescent tiger, and Sussie, a three-eyed bird.
—Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 18 Mar. 2026
The film has nods to traditional Korean folk painting in the characters of Derpy, a blue florescent tiger, and Sussie, a three-eyed bird.
—Samantha Masunaga, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tiger
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Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2026
The Oakland Zoo rescued Mia and another tiger named Lola from a roadside zoo in Oklahoma in 2022.
—Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 19 Mar. 2026
The film has nods to traditional Korean folk painting in the characters of Derpy, a blue florescent tiger, and Sussie, a three-eyed bird.
—Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 18 Mar. 2026
The film has nods to traditional Korean folk painting in the characters of Derpy, a blue florescent tiger, and Sussie, a three-eyed bird.
—Samantha Masunaga, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 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 26 Mar. 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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