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reindeer
(redirected from Arctic caribou)

   Also found in: Medical, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.01 sec.
rein·deer  (rndîr)
n. pl. reindeer or rein·deers
A large deer (Rangifer tarandus) of the Arctic and northern regions of Eurasia and North America, having branched antlers in both sexes.

[Middle English reindere : Old Norse hreinn, reindeer; see ker-1 in Indo-European roots + Middle English der, animal; see deer.]
Word History: Although Saint Nick uses reins on his reindeer and reindeer are used to pull sleds in Lapland and northern Siberia, the word reindeer has nothing to do with reins. The element -deer is indeed our word deer, but the rein- part is borrowed from another language, specifically from the Scandinavian languages spoken by the chiefly Danish and Norwegian invaders and settlers of England from the 9th to the 11th century. Even though the Old Icelandic language in which much of Old Norse literature is written is not the same variety of Old Norse spoken by these settlers of England, it is close enough to give us an idea of the words that were borrowed into English. Thus we can cite the Old Icelandic word hreinn, which means "reindeer," as the source of the first part of the English word. The word reindeer is first recorded in Middle English in a work composed before 1400.

reindeer [ˈreɪnˌdɪə]
n pl -deer, -deers
(Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Animals) a large deer, Rangifer tarandus, having large branched antlers in the male and female and inhabiting the arctic regions of Greenland, Europe, and Asia. It also occurs in North America, where it is known as a caribou
[from Old Norse hreindȳri, from hreinn reindeer + dyr animal; related to Dutch rendier, German Rentier; see deer]
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.reindeer - Arctic deer with large antlers in both sexesreindeer - Arctic deer with large antlers in both sexes; called `reindeer' in Eurasia and `caribou' in North America
cervid, deer - distinguished from Bovidae by the male's having solid deciduous antlers
genus Rangifer, Rangifer - reindeer or caribou
Rangifer caribou, woodland caribou - any of several large caribou living in coniferous forests of southern Canada; in some classifications included in the species Rangifer tarandus
barren ground caribou, Rangifer arcticus - of tundra of northern Canada; in some classifications included in the species Rangifer tarandus

reindeer noun
Related words
male buck
Translations
reindeer [ˈreɪndɪəʳ] N (reindeer, reindeers (pl)) → reno m

reindeer [ˈreɪndɪər] [reindeer] [ˈreɪndɪər] (pl) nrenne m

reindeer
n pl <-> → Ren(tier) nt; Rudolph the red-nosed reindeerRudolf Rotnase m

reindeer [ˈreɪnˌdɪəʳ] n pl invrenna

reindeer
n reindeer [ˈreindiə]
a kind of large deer found in Northern Europe, Asia and America. rendier رنَّه، أيِّل северен елен sob rensdyr das Ren τάρανδος reno põhjapõder گوزن شمالی poro renne אַיָיל הַצָפוֹן एक प्रकार का हिरण sob rénszarvas rusa kutub hreindÿr renna となかい 순록(馴鹿) šiaurės elnias ziemeļbriedis rusa kutub rendier reinsdyr renifer rena ren северный олень sob irvas ren กวางขนาดใหญ่แถบขั้วโลกเหนือ ren geyiği 馴鹿 північний олень ہرن کی قسم کا جانور tuần lộc 鹿

reindeer حيوان الرنة sob rensdyr Rentier τάρανδος reno poro renne sob renna トナカイ 순록 rendier reinsdyr renifer rena северный олень ren กวางขนาดใหญ่แถบขั้วโลกเหนือ ren geyiği con tuần lộc 驯鹿


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