noun
caribou
KA-rih-boo
noun
1
A large North American deer related to the reindeer, known for its long migrations.
"Herds of caribou migrate hundreds of miles each year across the tundra."
"Indigenous communities in the Arctic have long depended on caribou for food."
How to Use Caribou
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA type of large deer native to Arctic and subarctic North America; the same species as the Eurasian reindeer.
Common pairings
caribou herd
caribou migration
Word Forms
caribous plural, caribou plural
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Herds of _____ migrate hundreds of miles each year across the tundra.
Etymology
Borrowed from Canadian French caribou, from the Mi'kmaq word qalipu, meaning roughly "the one that shovels (snow)" — a nod to how the animal paws through snow to reach food.