elephants

noun

variants also elephant
plural of elephant
as in whales
something or someone that is unusually large and powerful by any standard, the new shopping mall will be an elephant and one that is certain to alter the retail landscape

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of elephants Some visitors spent time walking through the herd, moving from one elephant to another. — Goodluck Ajeh, Christian Science Monitor, 9 Aug. 2026 Hippos, which are herbivores, are the third-largest land animal after elephants and white rhinos and can weigh as much as 8,000 pounds. — Dennis Romero, NBC news, 8 Aug. 2026 The elephant deaths and disputes about the cause have intensified concerns over growing human-wildlife conflict in the region due to expanding agricultural activities near Amboseli park. — ABC News, 7 Aug. 2026 In this week's installment of Far-Flung Postcards, NPR's Diaa Hadid visits the Hurulu Eco Park in Sri Lanka, where elephants roam freely. — Brittney Melton, NPR, 7 Aug. 2026 The elephants will be under 24/7 security and were already attracting thousands of onlookers before the exhibition officially opened. — Brandon Truitt, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026 Then we are reminded of the elephant — or in this case, rat — in the room. — Austin Perry Outkick, FOXNews.com, 5 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elephants
  1. whales
  2. dinosaurs
  3. giants
  4. mammoths
  5. monsters
Noun
  • These trips also have plenty of opportunities to see whales, orcas, and other sea life, with scenic cruising in the Alexander Archipelago’s Frederick Sound.
    — Scott Laird, Travel + Leisure, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Four other whales from that transport were brought to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.
    — Jared Ochacher, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of whales
Noun
  • Anne Hathaway, Ewan McGregor and a pack of rogue dinosaurs won’t be able to catch the web-slinging Spider-Man at the top of box office charts.
    — Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 12 Aug. 2026
  • The End of Oak Street is about a suburban neighborhood that comes under siege by dinosaurs.
    — Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of dinosaurs
Noun
  • Even before the Ukraine war, international shipping giants were skeptical and the route remains controversial.
    — Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Women execs were excited about this world-shifting moment in technology, and didn’t want another generation of tech giants to pass them by.
    — Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of giants
Noun
  • Woolly mammoths coexisted with early humans who hunted the cold-resistant herbivores for food and used their tusks and bones as tools.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 4 Aug. 2026
  • These results raise some questions about how Ice Age hunter-gatherers interacted with wooly mammoths.
    — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 30 July 2026
Definition of mammoths
Noun
  • As creatures from Indonesian mythology emerge to threaten his students’ community, Chris and his pupils find their fight extends beyond monsters to their own inner struggles.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The viruses the researchers created are not Frankenstein’s monsters.
    — Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of monsters

Browse Nearby Words

elephantine
elephants
elevate
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Cite this Entry

“Elephants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elephants. Accessed 17 Aug. 2026.

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