variants
also puma
as in panthers
a large tawny cat of the wild
adult pumas can sometimes weigh over 200 pounds
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of pumas
On Thursday, the California Fish and Game Commission unanimously voted to list six specific mountain lion populations — more than 1,400 pumas — in Southern California and the Central Coast as threatened under state law.
—
Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
In Chile’s famous Torres Del Paine National Park, a mother puma with her two cubs in tow attacks a guanaco.
—Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 18 Feb. 2026
Cougars, mountain lions, panthers and pumas are the same cat species — puma concolor, according to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance website.
—Olga R. Rodriguez, Fortune, 27 Jan. 2026
Chile’s Torres Del Paine is famous for its stunning landscapes, but also for being home to a fierce predator, the puma.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Mountain lions are also known as cougars, pumas, panthers or catamounts, and there are projected to be 3,800 to 4,400 mountain lions currently in the wild in Colorado, the CPW noted.
—Mason Leath, ABC News, 2 Jan. 2026
Mountain lions — also known as cougars, pumas or catamounts — can weigh 130 pounds and grow to more than 6 feet long.
—Dallas Morning News, 2 Jan. 2026
Throughout the collection, which was designed to honor the Quechua artisans and Andes communities whom the brand has collaborated with, styles feature and celebrate the sacred Peruvian symbols of the condor, puma and snake.
—Emily Mercer, Footwear News, 13 Nov. 2025
Footage of the incident shows the mountain lion — the species also known as a cougar, puma or panther — lurking in some brush at the Orange County park, peeking its face tentatively from a spot behind some leaves.
—Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025
Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
In Chile’s famous Torres Del Paine National Park, a mother puma with her two cubs in tow attacks a guanaco.
—Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 18 Feb. 2026
Cougars, mountain lions, panthers and pumas are the same cat species — puma concolor, according to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance website.
—Olga R. Rodriguez, Fortune, 27 Jan. 2026
Chile’s Torres Del Paine is famous for its stunning landscapes, but also for being home to a fierce predator, the puma.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Mountain lions are also known as cougars, pumas, panthers or catamounts, and there are projected to be 3,800 to 4,400 mountain lions currently in the wild in Colorado, the CPW noted.
—Mason Leath, ABC News, 2 Jan. 2026
Mountain lions — also known as cougars, pumas or catamounts — can weigh 130 pounds and grow to more than 6 feet long.
—Dallas Morning News, 2 Jan. 2026
Throughout the collection, which was designed to honor the Quechua artisans and Andes communities whom the brand has collaborated with, styles feature and celebrate the sacred Peruvian symbols of the condor, puma and snake.
—Emily Mercer, Footwear News, 13 Nov. 2025
Footage of the incident shows the mountain lion — the species also known as a cougar, puma or panther — lurking in some brush at the Orange County park, peeking its face tentatively from a spot behind some leaves.
—Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pumas
Noun
-
Our manatees, panthers, bears and countless other species rely on healthy ecosystems to survive, ecosystems that are shrinking daily due to human encroachment and legislative negligence.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 Feb. 2026
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Falco knew about its lore, how a panther once stalked the community for months.—
Stephen M. Deusner,
Pitchfork,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Animal exodus Bly Road has long been home to many animals, Hahnfeld and the Hoffs said, including cougars, eagles, owls and deer.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
20 Feb. 2026
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In one, a therapist-like figure helps a young man through a question about how to improve communication with his mother—then starts serving him ads for hot cougars in his area.—
Julia Black,
Vanity Fair,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pumas.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pumas. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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