zebra

See also: Zebra, zébra, zebră, zebrā, zebrą, and żebra

English

A zebra (species of Equus)

Etymology

1600; borrowed from Italian zebra, from Portuguese zebra, zebro (zebra), from Old Portuguese enzebro, ezebra, azebra (wild ass), from earlier cebrario (882), ezebrario (897), from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin equiferus (wild horse) (Pliny), from equus (horse) + ferus (wild).

(biracial person): The term zebra, as used in its pejorative sense, was popularized on the television situation comedy The Jeffersons. The term was used by the series protagonist, George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley), to express disdain for his daughter-in-law, Jenny Willis Jefferson, whose father was white and mother was black.

While the word was traditionally pronounced with a long initial vowel in standard English, during the twentieth century a vowel shift occurred in regions of England, with the adoption of an initial short vowel.[1] This pronunciation is now used throughout the UK and Commonwealth. The long vowel pronunciation remains standard in American English.

Pronunciation

  • (UK, Commonwealth) IPA(key): /ˈzɛbɹə/, /ˈziːbɹə/
    • (file)
    • Hyphenation: zeb‧ra
  • (US and trad. English) IPA(key): /ˈziːbɹə/
    • (file)
    • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

Noun

zebra (plural zebra or zebras)

  1. Any of three species of genus Equus: E. grevyi, E. quagga, or E. zebra, all with black and white stripes and native to Africa.
  2. (sports, slang) A referee.
  3. (medicine, slang) An unlikely diagnosis, especially for symptoms probably caused by a common ailment. (Originates in the advice often given to medical students: "When you hear hoof beats, think of horses, not zebras.")
  4. (vulgar, derogatory, slang) A biracial person, specifically one born to a member of the Sub-Saharan African race and a Caucasian.
  5. (informal) A fish, the zebra cichlid.

Synonyms

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

See also

References

  1. Wells, John (1997), “Our changing pronunciation”, in Transactions of the Yorkshire Dialect Society, retrieved 6 February 2014, pages xix.42-48

Anagrams


Basque

Pronunciation

  • (file)

Noun

zebra

  1. zebra

Declension


Catalan

Pronunciation

Noun

zebra f (plural zebres)

  1. zebra

Cebuano

Etymology

Borrowed from English zebra, from Italian zebra, from Portuguese zebra, zebro (zebra), from Old Portuguese enzebro, ezebra, azebra (wild ass), from earlier cebrario (882), ezebrario (897), from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin equiferus (wild horse) (Pliny), from equus (horse) + ferus (wild).

Noun

zebra

  1. a zebra; any of three species of genus Equus: E. grevyi, E. quagga, or E. zebra, all with black and white stripes and native to Africa
  2. a pattern or motif similar to the stripes of a zebra
  3. (informal) an animal with zebra-like stripes

Czech

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzɛbra/

Noun

zebra f

  1. zebra

Declension

Further reading

  • zebra in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
  • zebra in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989

Danish

Noun

zebra c (singular definite zebraen, plural indefinite zebraer)

  1. zebra

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • (file)

Noun

zebra m (plural zebra's, diminutive zebraatje n)

  1. zebra

Esperanto

Etymology

From zebro (zebra) + -a.

Adjective

zebra (accusative singular zebran, plural zebraj, accusative plural zebrajn)

  1. zebrine, hippotigrine

Hypernyms


Hungarian

Zebra [1].
Zebra [2].

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈzɛbrɒ]
  • Hyphenation: zeb‧ra

Noun

zebra (plural zebrák)

  1. (biology) zebra (animal)
  2. (road transport) pedestrian crossing, crosswalk, zebra crossing

Declension

Inflection (stem in long/high vowel, back harmony)
singular plural
nominative zebra zebrák
accusative zebrát zebrákat
dative zebrának zebráknak
instrumental zebrával zebrákkal
causal-final zebráért zebrákért
translative zebrává zebrákká
terminative zebráig zebrákig
essive-formal zebraként zebrákként
essive-modal
inessive zebrában zebrákban
superessive zebrán zebrákon
adessive zebránál zebráknál
illative zebrába zebrákba
sublative zebrára zebrákra
allative zebrához zebrákhoz
elative zebrából zebrákból
delative zebráról zebrákról
ablative zebrától zebráktól
Possessive forms of zebra
possessor single possession multiple possessions
1st person sing. zebrám zebráim
2nd person sing. zebrád zebráid
3rd person sing. zebrája zebrái
1st person plural zebránk zebráink
2nd person plural zebrátok zebráitok
3rd person plural zebrájuk zebráik

Synonyms

Derived terms

(Compound words):


Italian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈd͡zɛb.ra/

Noun

zebra f (plural zebre)

  1. zebra
  2. (in the plural, informal) zebra crossing

Ladin

Noun

zebra f (plural zebres)

  1. zebra

Latin

Pronunciation

Noun

zēbra f (genitive zēbrae); first declension

  1. (New Latin) zebra (Equus zebra)

Inflection

First declension.

Case Singular Plural
Nominative zēbra zēbrae
Genitive zēbrae zēbrārum
Dative zēbrae zēbrīs
Accusative zēbram zēbrās
Ablative zēbrā zēbrīs
Vocative zēbra zēbrae

Latvian

Zebra

Etymology

Possibly ultimately from a Congolese name for the animal, via Portuguese, via some other European language. Possibly also ultimately from Latin equiferus (wild horse), via Portuguese and/or Italian.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzɛbra/
  • (file)

Noun

zebra f (4th declension)

  1. zebra (esp. Equus zebra)

Declension


Polish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzɛ.bra/
  • (file)

Noun

zebra f

  1. zebra (animal)
  2. (colloquial) zebra crossing

Declension

Synonyms

  • (crossing) przejście dla pieszych, pasy

Portuguese

zebra (Equus quagga antiquorum)

Etymology

From zebro, from Old Portuguese zebro, ezebro (European wild ass), from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin equiferus (wild horse), from equus (horse) + ferus (wild). Compare Spanish cebra.

Pronunciation

  • (Portugal) IPA(key): /ˈze.βɾɐ/
  • (Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈze.bɾa/, /ˈze.bɾɐ/
  • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

Noun

zebra f (plural zebras)

  1. zebra

Descendants


Serbo-Croatian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /zêbra/

Noun

zȅbra f (Cyrillic spelling зе̏бра)

  1. zebra

Declension


Slovene

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzèːbra/, /ˈzéːbra/
  • Tonal orthography: zẹ́bra, zẹ̑bra

Noun

zébra f (genitive zébre, nominative plural zébre)

  1. zebra

Declension


Spanish

Noun

zebra f (plural zebras)

  1. Obsolete spelling of cebra

Swedish

Alternative forms

Noun

zebra c

  1. zebra

Declension

Declension of zebra 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative zebra zebran zebror zebrorna
Genitive zebras zebrans zebrors zebrornas

Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from English zebra.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈzeb.ɾɑ]
  • Hyphenation: zeb‧ra

Noun

zebra (definite accusative zebrayı, plural zebralar)

  1. zebra

Declension

Inflection
Nominative zebra
Definite accusative zebrayı
Singular Plural
Nominative zebra zebralar
Definite accusative zebrayı zebraları
Dative zebraya zebralara
Locative zebrada zebralarda
Ablative zebradan zebralardan
Genitive zebranın zebraların
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