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anteater

 - 3 dictionary results

ant⋅eat⋅er

  [ant-ee-ter]
Use anteater in a Sentence
–noun
1. any of several mammals of the family Myrmecophagidae, having a long, tapered snout, extensile tongue, and powerful front claws and feeding chiefly on ants and termites. Compare giant anteater, silky anteater, tamandua.
2. the aardvark.
3. a pangolin.
4. an echidna.
5. banded anteater.
Origin:
1755–65; ant + eater
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ant·eat·er   (ānt'ē'tər)   
n.  

  1. Any of several tropical American mammals of the family Myrmecophagidae that lack teeth and feed on ants and termites, especially the giant anteater.

  2. Any of several other animals, including the echidna, aardvark, and pangolin, that feed on ants.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

anteater 
1764, of the S.Amer. species; 1868 of the Australian echidna.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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