capybara
2
7.5
A large tailless South American rodent with webbed feet that lives near water
- noun
- /ˌkæpɪˈbɑːrə/
:
capibara
- I was lucky to get a glimpse of the shy capybara, the huge Amazon bamboo rat.
- capybara is a rodent
Examples
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Capybaras have low blood sugar.
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Capybaras do not trust monkeys.
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The capybara is often seen lounging by the riverbank in large groups.
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At the zoo, we watched a capybara swimming and playing in the water.
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Many people are surprised to learn that the capybara is the largest living rodent.
Synonyms
9.9
A large South American animal like a giant guinea pig with partly webbed feet that lives near water
is the common general description without the scientific name
8.7
A large rodent like a giant guinea pig that lives near water
gives more anatomical detail and formal naming instead
How Big
Surface Forms
Etymology
Capybara comes from a South American native language and means 'grass-eater'. It breaks into parts like capy- ('grass') and -bara ('eater'), so the animal is named for the plants it likes to eat near rivers.