# elephant

Pronunciation: US say "EL-uh-fuhnt" /ˈɛl.ə.fənt/; UK say "EL-i-fuhnt" /ˈɛl.ɪ.fənt/

## Noun

1. A very large gray mammal of Africa or Asia, with a long trunk, large ears and usually tusks, the largest living land animal.
   - Simple: A very large gray animal from Africa or Asia with a long nose called a trunk and big ears.
   - _The elephant wrapped its trunk around a bundle of branches._
   - _Wild elephants roam across large stretches of African savanna._
2. The figure of an elephant as the symbol of the US Republican Party, or the party itself represented by that symbol. *(US)*
   - Simple: An elephant used as the sign of the Republican Party in the US, or the party itself.
   - _The cartoon showed the elephant and the donkey arguing over the budget while the clock ran out._
   - _Delegates waved banners printed with elephants as the nominee took the stage at the convention._
3. Anything that is huge, heavy, and difficult to move or deal with.
   - Simple: A thing that is very big and heavy and hard to move or manage.
   - _The aging mainframe had become an elephant, costly to run and impossible to replace quickly._
   - _The old oak wardrobe was an elephant, and it took four movers to get it down the narrow stairs._
4. A word added after each number when counting aloud, making each count last roughly one second. *(British)*
   - Simple: A word said after each number when counting slowly, so that each count takes about one second.
   - _After the whistle, count one elephant, two elephant, three elephant before you start running._
   - _The children counted one elephant, two elephant while hiding their faces._
5. In xiangqi (Chinese chess), a piece that moves exactly two points diagonally, may not jump over intervening pieces, and may not cross the river.
   - Simple: In Chinese chess, a piece that moves two points diagonally, cannot jump other pieces, and cannot cross the river.
   - _Unable to cross the river, her elephants stayed back and helped guard the general._
   - _Because the river divides the board, an elephant must remain on its own half._
6. A large standard size of paper used in drawing and printing, measuring roughly 23 by 28 inches.
   - Simple: A large size of drawing or printing paper, about 23 by 28 inches.

## Noun

7. The hard, white substance that makes up the tusks of elephants and similar animals: that is, ivory. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The hard, smooth white material that forms the tusks of elephants and walruses.

## Origin

It came from Middle English elefant, via Old French elefant and Latin elephantus, from Ancient Greek ἐλέφᾱς (eléphās). This is believed to derive from an Afroasiatic form, such as a Proto-Berber word or the Egyptian word for 'elephant' or 'ivory'. It replaced the older Middle English olifant, which had earlier replaced Old English elpend.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/elephant (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).