wapiti

[ wop-i-tee ]

noun,plural wap·i·tis, (especially collectively) wap·i·ti.

Origin of wapiti

1
An Americanism dating back to 1805–10; from Shawnee wa·piti literally, “white rump” (equivalent to unattested Proto-Algonquian wa·p- “white” + unattested -etwiy- “rump”); introduced as an English word by U.S. physician and naturalist Benjamin S. Barton (1766–1815 )

Words Nearby wapiti

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use wapiti in a sentence

  • Mrs. Crozier is an exhibition model, and Shiel Crozier's over six feet three, and loose and free, and like a wapiti in his gait.

  • The wapiti abandoned its original plans and settled down for a stay.

    The Forgotten Planet | Murray Leinster
  • So a request to the sportsmen on the wapiti had caused them to turn aside.

    The Forgotten Planet | Murray Leinster
  • The sportsmen on the wapiti wanted some of that kind of sport.

    The Forgotten Planet | Murray Leinster
  • The bighorn resembles the wapiti in colour, although it is of a lighter brown, especially in winter.

    North America | Israel C. Russell

British Dictionary definitions for wapiti

wapiti

/ (ˈwɒpɪtɪ) /


nounplural -tis
  1. a large deer, Cervus canadensis, with large much-branched antlers, native to North America and now also common in the South Island of New Zealand: Also called: American elk

Origin of wapiti

1
C19: from Shawnee, literally: white deer, from wap (unattested) white; from the animal's white tail and rump

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012