Walrus

Pronunciation

UK IPA: /ËˆwÉ”Ël.É¹É™s/, /ËˆwÉ’l.É¹É™s/
US IPA: /ËˆwÉ‘l.É¹É™s/, /ËˆwÉ”l.É¹É™s/

Origin

From Danish hvalros, an inversion of Old Norse hrosshvalr ("horse-whale"). The term may have entered English via Dutch walrus. Compare Icelandic hross ("a horse") and hvalur ("a whale") and German Walross.

Full definition of walrus

Noun

walrus

(plural walruses or walrus or walrusses)

(countable) A large Arctic marine mammal related to seals and having long tusks, tough, wrinkled skin, and four flippers, .

Synonyms

morse obsolete
sea horse rare

Usage notes

The hypercorrect plurals walri and walrii, based on a faulty assumption that the word derives from a Latin noun of the second declension, are generally considered to be nonstandard.