- an|i|mal
- an|i|mal «AN uh muhl», noun, adjective.–n.1. any living thing that is not a plant. Most animals can move about, while most plants cannot. Animals feed upon other animals or plants. Many animals have a cavity for digestion and a nervous system, and can inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. A dog, a bird, a fish, a snake, a fly, and a worm are all animals. Animals are distinguished typically from plants by more advanced types of sensation and response to stimuli.2. an animal other than man; brute; beast: »
a farm stocked with pigs, cows, geese, and various other animals. Man has always considered himself closer to God than the animals are.
3. a) an animal with four feet; quadruped: »Man uses animals as beasts of burden: the elephant in the jungle, the water buffalo in or near the river and marsh, the donkey in the mountains, the horse on the plains, and the camel in the desert.
b) any mammal, as distinguished from a bird, reptile, and other lower forms.4. a person who is like a beast in the way that he acts or thinks; brutish or degenerate person: »His intellect is not replenished, he is only an animal, only sensible in the duller parts (Shakespeare).
5. Figurative. any person or thing regarded as strange, different, or unusual: »Monique…hasn't yet grasped the English mentality—if there is such an animal (Maclean's).
–adj.1. of animals; relating to or connected with animals: »the animal world, animal fats.
2. like that of animals; purely physical: »animal courage, animal cunning. What is important and inspiring…is the idea that the human spirit will be able to master its animal nature through reason (Edmund Wilson).
3. sensual: »animal appetites.
–an´i|mal|like´, adjective.Synonym Study noun.2 Animal, beast, brute mean a living creature of a lower order than humans. Animal, the general word, usually suggests nothing more: »Be kind to animals.
Beast usually applies to four-legged animals, as distinct from birds, insects, etc.: »The horse is a noble beast.
Brute emphasizes the lack of ability to reason, the ability popularly thought of as that which sets man apart from animals: »The poor brutes, maddened by fear, dashed back into the center of the fire.
Useful english dictionary. 2012.
