Elephant's foot

Elephant's foot
Elephant El"e*phant ([e^]l"[-e]*fant), n. [OE. elefaunt, olifant, OF. olifant, F. ['e]l['e]phant, L. elephantus, elephas, -antis, fr. Gr. 'ele`fas, 'ele`fantos; of unknown origin; perh. fr. Skr. ibha, with the Semitic article al, el, prefixed, or fr. Semitic Aleph hindi Indian bull; or cf. Goth. ulbandus camel, AS. olfend.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) A mammal of the order {Proboscidia} and family {Elephantidae}, of which two living species, {Elephas maximus} (formerly {Elephas Indicus}) and {Loxodonta Africana} (formerly {E. Africanus}), and several fossil species, are known. They have five toes, a long proboscis or trunk, and two large ivory tusks proceeding from the extremity of the upper jaw, and curving upwards. The molar teeth are large and have transverse folds. Elephants are the largest land animals now existing. The elephant is classed as a pachyderm. [1913 Webster]

2. Ivory; the tusk of the elephant. [Obs.] --Dryden. [1913 Webster]

{Elephant apple} (Bot.), an East Indian fruit with a rough, hard rind, and edible pulp, borne by {Feronia elephantum}, a large tree related to the orange.

{Elephant bed} (Geol.), at Brighton, England, abounding in fossil remains of elephants. --Mantell.

{Elephant beetle} (Zo["o]l.), any very large beetle of the genus {Goliathus} (esp. {G. giganteus}), of the family {Scarab[ae]id[ae]}. They inhabit West Africa.

{Elephant fish} (Zo["o]l.), a chim[ae]roid fish ({Callorhynchus antarcticus}), with a proboscis-like projection of the snout.

{Elephant paper}, paper of large size, 23 [times] 28 inches.

{Double elephant paper}, paper measuring 263/4 [times] 40 inches. See Note under {Paper}.

{Elephant seal} (Zo["o]l.), an African jumping shrew ({Macroscelides typicus}), having a long nose like a proboscis.

{Elephant's ear} (Bot.), a name given to certain species of the genus Begonia, which have immense one-sided leaves.

{Elephant's foot} (Bot.) (a) A South African plant ({Testudinaria Elephantipes}), which has a massive rootstock covered with a kind of bark cracked with deep fissures; -- called also {tortoise plant}. The interior part is barely edible, whence the plant is also called {Hottentot's bread}. (b) A genus ({Elephantopus}) of coarse, composite weeds.

{Elephant's tusk} (Zo["o]l.), the tooth shell. See {Dentalium}. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • Elephant's foot — can mean any of several plants:* Adenia pechuelii , genus Adenia * Beaucarnea recurvata * Dioscorea elephantipes * Elephantopus species, family Asteraceae …   Wikipedia

  • elephant's-foot — noun 1. South African vine having a massive rootstock covered with deeply fissured bark • Syn: ↑tortoise plant, ↑Hottentot bread vine, ↑Hottentot s bread vine, ↑Dioscorea elephantipes • Hypernyms: ↑vine • Mem …   Useful english dictionary

  • elephant's-foot — /el euh feuhnts foot /, n., pl. elephant s foots. a climbing vine, Dioscorea elephantipes, of southern Africa, having a massive, edible, yamlike tuber. Also called Hottentot s bread, tortoise plant. [1810 20] * * * ▪ plant also called  hottentot… …   Universalium

  • elephant's-foot — rauplėtoji dioskorėja statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Dioskorėjinių šeimos dekoratyvinis augalas (Dioscorea elephantipes), paplitęs pietų Afrikoje. atitikmenys: lot. Dioscorea elephantipes angl. elephant s foot; Hottentot bread vok.… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • elephant's-foot — švelnioji dramblotė statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Astrinių šeimos vaistinis augalas (Elephantopus mollis), paplitęs Šiaurės ir Pietų Amerikoje. atitikmenys: lot. Elephantopus mollis angl. elephantopus; elephant s foot šaltinis Valstybinės …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • Elephant's foot umbrella stand — is a parlour game that can be played with a various number of players, in which preferably only one participating players is familiar with the game.Game playPlay takes the form of rotating around the group of players, each player adding an item… …   Wikipedia

  • Elephant — El e*phant ([e^]l [ e]*fant), n. [OE. elefaunt, olifant, OF. olifant, F. [ e]l[ e]phant, L. elephantus, elephas, antis, fr. Gr. ele fas, ele fantos; of unknown origin; perh. fr. Skr. ibha, with the Semitic article al, el, prefixed, or fr. Semitic …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Elephant apple — Elephant El e*phant ([e^]l [ e]*fant), n. [OE. elefaunt, olifant, OF. olifant, F. [ e]l[ e]phant, L. elephantus, elephas, antis, fr. Gr. ele fas, ele fantos; of unknown origin; perh. fr. Skr. ibha, with the Semitic article al, el, prefixed, or fr …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Elephant bed — Elephant El e*phant ([e^]l [ e]*fant), n. [OE. elefaunt, olifant, OF. olifant, F. [ e]l[ e]phant, L. elephantus, elephas, antis, fr. Gr. ele fas, ele fantos; of unknown origin; perh. fr. Skr. ibha, with the Semitic article al, el, prefixed, or fr …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Elephant beetle — Elephant El e*phant ([e^]l [ e]*fant), n. [OE. elefaunt, olifant, OF. olifant, F. [ e]l[ e]phant, L. elephantus, elephas, antis, fr. Gr. ele fas, ele fantos; of unknown origin; perh. fr. Skr. ibha, with the Semitic article al, el, prefixed, or fr …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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