tiger

/ˈtaɪgər/

/ˈtaɪgə/

Other forms: tigers

You can think of a tiger as your sweet pet cat's distant cousin. Easily recognizable because of its distinctive dark stripes and orange fur, the tiger is the largest of all the cats.

Some subspecies of tiger can weigh as much as 600 pounds. Because they are such fierce predators, tigers and humans have often clashed throughout history, resulting in the tiger's current classification as an endangered species. A person who's especially ambitious or fierce might also be called a tiger. The word may share a root with the Old Persian tigra-, "sharp."

Definitions of tiger

1. noun

   large feline of forests in most of Asia having a tawny coat with black stripes; endangered
   synonyms: Panthera tigris

   types:

   tiger cub

   a young tiger

   Bengal tiger

   southern short-haired tiger

   tigress

   a female tiger

   type of:

   big cat, cat

   any of several large cats typically able to roar and living in the wild
2. noun

   a fierce or audacious person
   “he's a tiger on the tennis court”

   “it aroused the tiger in me”

   type of:

   individual, mortal, person, somebody, someone, soul

   a human being