[sur-vuh
l] 
) -val. | a long-limbed, nocturnal African cat, Felis serval, about the size of a bobcat, having a tawny coat spotted with black: now rare in many former habitats. |
| ser·val (sûr'vəl, sər-vāl') n. A long-legged wildcat (Felis serval) of Africa, having a tawny coat with black spots and large erect ears without tufts. [French, from Portuguese (lobo) cerval, deerlike (wolf), lynx, from Late Latin cervālis, from Latin cervus, deer; see ker-1 in Indo-European roots.] |