tiger

noun

ti·​ger ˈtī-gər 

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

3

British : a groom in livery

tigerish

ˈtī-g(ə-)rish 

adjective

tigerishly adverb

tigerishness noun

tigerlike

ˈtī-gər-ˌlīk 

adjective

Illustration of tiger

• tiger 1a

Synonyms of tiger

• shark
• barracuda
• bully
• pit bull
• fighter

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

Recalling the founder’s fantasy jewelry collections, the sandals featured semiprecious stone centerpieces including amethyst, lapis lazuli, tiger’s eye and green jade. — Jaden Thompson, Footwear News, 5 Oct. 2026

Acehnese conservationist Farwiza Farhan has spent years fighting to protect Sumatra’s Leuser Ecosystem—perhaps the last place on Earth where elephants, tigers, rhinos and orangutans still coexist in the wild. — Ashleigh Nghiem, Fortune, 5 Oct. 2026

Sumatran tigers, native to Indonesia, are classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as critically endangered. — Yi-Jin Yu, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026

Then there’s snake, tiger, zebra, and deer print…cow print is still hanging around too. — Fiona Ward, Glamour, 1 Oct. 2026

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

Phrases Containing tiger

• Amur tiger
• Asian tiger mosquito
• Bengal tiger
• blind tiger
• false saber-toothed tiger
• paper tiger
• saber-toothed tiger
• saber-tooth tiger
• Siberian tiger
• Tasmanian tiger
• tiger beetle
• tiger cat
• tiger lily
• tiger maple
• tiger mosquito
• tiger moth
• tiger salamander
• tiger's-eye
• tiger shark
• tiger shrimp
• tiger swallowtail

Rhymes for tiger

• geiger

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