The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Tiger \Ti"ger\, n. [OE. tigre, F. tigre, L. tigris, Gr. ti`gris;
probably of Persian origin; cf. Zend tighra pointed, tighri
an arrow, Per. t[imac]r; perhaps akin to E. stick, v. t.; --
probably so named from its quickness.]
1. A very large and powerful carnivore (Felis tigris)
native of Southern Asia and the East Indies. Its back and
sides are tawny or rufous yellow, transversely striped
with black, the tail is ringed with black, the throat and
belly are nearly white. When full grown, it equals or
exceeds the lion in size and strength. Called also royal
tiger, and Bengal tiger.
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2. Fig.: A ferocious, bloodthirsty person.
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As for heinous tiger, Tamora. --Shak.
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3. A servant in livery, who rides with his master or
mistress. --Dickens.
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4. A kind of growl or screech, after cheering; as, three
cheers and a tiger. [Colloq. U. S.]
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5. A pneumatic box or pan used in refining sugar.
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American tiger. (Zool.)
(a) The puma.
(b) The jaguar.
Clouded tiger (Zool.), a handsome striped and spotted
carnivore (Felis macrocelis or Felis marmorata) native
of the East Indies and Southern Asia. Its body is about
three and a half feet long, and its tail about three feet
long. Its ground color is brownish gray, and the dark
markings are irregular stripes, spots, and rings, but
there are always two dark bands on the face, one extending
back from the eye, and one from the angle of the mouth.
Called also tortoise-shell tiger.
Mexican tiger (Zool.), the jaguar.
Tiger beetle (Zool.), any one of numerous species of active
carnivorous beetles of the family Cicindelidae. They
usually inhabit dry or sandy places, and fly rapidly.
Tiger bittern. (Zool.) See Sun bittern, under Sun.
Tiger cat (Zool.), any one of several species of wild cats
of moderate size with dark transverse bars or stripes
somewhat resembling those of the tiger.
Tiger flower (Bot.), an iridaceous plant of the genus
Tigridia (as Tigridia conchiflora, Tigridia
grandiflora, etc.) having showy flowers, spotted or
streaked somewhat like the skin of a tiger.
Tiger grass (Bot.), a low East Indian fan palm (Chamaerops
Ritchieana). It is used in many ways by the natives. --J.
Smith (Dict. Econ. Plants).
Tiger lily. (Bot.) See under Lily.
Tiger moth (Zool.), any one of numerous species of moths of
the family Arctiadae which are striped or barred with
black and white or with other conspicuous colors. The
larvae are called woolly bears.
Tiger shark (Zool.), a voracious shark (Galeocerdo
tigrinus syn. Galeocerdo maculatus) more or less barred
or spotted with yellow. It is found in both the Atlantic
and Indian Ocean. Called also zebra shark.
Tiger shell (Zool.), a large and conspicuously spotted
cowrie (Cypraea tigris); -- so called from its fancied
resemblance to a tiger in color and markings. Called also
tiger cowrie.
Tiger snake (Zool.), either of two very venomous snakes of
Tasmania and Australia, Notechis scutatis and Notechis
ater, which grow up to 5 feet in length.
Tiger wolf (Zool.), the spotted hyena (Hyaena crocuta).
Tiger wood, the variegated heartwood of a tree (Machaerium
Schomburgkii) found in Guiana.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Zebra \Ze"bra\, n. [Pg. zebra; cf. Sp. cebra; probably from a
native African name.] (Zool.)
Any member of three species of African wild horses remarkable
for having the body white or yellowish white, and
conspicuously marked with dark brown or brackish bands.
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Note: The true or mountain zebra (Equus zebra syn. Asinus
zebra) is nearly white, and the bands which cover the
body and legs are glossy black. Its tail has a tuft of
black hair at the tip. It inhabits the mountains of
Central and Southern Africa, and is noted for its
wariness and wildness, as well as for its swiftness.
The second species (Equus Burchellii syn. Asinus
Burchellii or Equus quagga), known as Burchell's
zebra, plains zebra, and dauw, is the most
abundant, inhabiting the grassy plains of tropical and
southern Africa, and differing from the preceding in
not having dark bands on the legs, while those on the
body are more irregular. It has a long tail, covered
with long white flowing hair. Grevy's zebra (Equus
grevyi) is distinct from the others in being placed in
the subgenus Dolichohippus, whereas the plains and
mountain zebras are placed in the subgenus Hippotigris.
More on zebras can be found at:
http://www.imh.org/imh/bw/zebra.html
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Zebra caterpillar, the larva of an American noctuid moth
(Mamestra picta). It is light yellow, with a broad black
stripe on the back and one on each side; the lateral
stripes are crossed with withe lines. It feeds on
cabbages, beets, clover, and other cultivated plants.
Zebra opossum, the zebra wolf. See under Wolf.
Zebra parrakeet, an Australian grass parrakeet, often kept
as a cage bird. Its upper parts are mostly pale greenish
yellow, transversely barred with brownish black crescents;
the under parts, rump, and upper tail coverts, are bright
green; two central tail feathers and the cheek patches are
blue. Called also canary parrot, scallop parrot,
shell parrot, and undulated parrot.
Zebra poison (Bot.), a poisonous tree (Euphorbia arborea)
of the Spurge family, found in South Africa. Its milky
juice is so poisonous that zebras have been killed by
drinking water in which its branches had been placed, and
it is also used as an arrow poison. --J. Smith (Dict.
Econ. Plants).
Zebra shark. Same as Tiger shark, under Tiger.
Zebra spider, a hunting spider.
Zebra swallowtail, a very large North American
swallow-tailed butterfly (Iphiclides ajax), in which the
wings are yellow, barred with black; -- called also
ajax.
Zebra wolf. See under Wolf.
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