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Added 10 October 2026

mammoth

/ˈmæməθ/ noun

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about mammoth at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Any of numerous extinct elephants widely distributed in the Pleistocene; extremely large with hairy coats and long upcurved tusks.

adjective

So exceedingly large or extensive as to suggest a giant or mammoth.
a gigantic redwood

Origin

From obsolete Russian ма́мант (mámant), modern ма́монт (mámont), probably from a Uralic word, such as Proto-Mansi *mān-oŋt (“earth horn”). Possibly influenced by behemoth. Adjectival use was popularized in the early 1800s by references to the Cheshire Mammoth Cheese presented to American paleontologist and president Thomas Jefferson.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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