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Synonyms for lemur

Grammar : Noun
Spell : lee-mer
Phonetic Transcription : ˈli mər

Top 10 synonyms for lemur
Other synonyms for the word lemur

Définition of lemur

Origin :
  • nocturnal Madagascar mammal, 1795, coined by Linnaeus, from Latin lemures (plural) "spirits of the dead" in Roman mythology.
  • The oldest usage of "lemur" for a primate that we are aware of is in Linnaeus's catalog of the Museum of King Adolf Frederick of Sweden (Tattersall, 1982); .... In this work, he explained his use of the name "lemur" thus: "Lemures dixi hos, quod noctu imprimis obambulant, hominibus quodanmodo similes, & lento passu vagantur [I call them lemurs, because they go around mainly by night, in a certain way similar to humans, and roam with a slow pace]" [Dunkel, Alexander R., et al., "Giant rabbits, marmosets, and British comedies: etymology of lemur names, part 1," in "Lemur News," vol. 16, 2011-2012, p.65]
  • Lemuria (1864) was the name given by English zoologist P.L. Sclater (1829-1913) to a hypothetical ancient continent connecting Africa and Southeastern Asia (and including Madagascar), which was hypothesized to explain phenomena now accounted for by continental drift. Earlier it was the name of the Roman feast of the Lemures.
  • As in monkey : noun primate
  • As in primate : noun anthropoid
Example sentences :
  • Excepting the head and this finger, he closely resembles a Lemur.
  • Extract from : « The Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society - Vol. 4 » by Various
  • The skull is more like that of the Anthropoidea than is the skull of any other Lemur.
  • Extract from : « The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia » by Frank Evers Beddard
  • The lemur is nocturnal in its habits and noiseless in its movements.
  • Extract from : « Natural History in Anecdote » by Various
  • In short, the lemur has a hand on each of its four limbs, and no feet at all.
  • Extract from : « Concerning Animals and Other Matters » by E.H. Aitken, (AKA Edward Hamilton)
  • Aye-aye (ī-ī; Cheirŏmys madagascariensis), an animal of Madagascar, so called from its cry; now referred to the lemur family.
  • Extract from : « The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 3 » by Various
  • There are also huge bats, an animal of the monkey tribe called the lemur, hedgehogs, and rabbits.
  • Extract from : « The Fugitives » by R.M. Ballantyne
  • Every night, from Yambuya to the plains, we had been troubled by harsh screams from the lemur.
  • Extract from : « In Darkest Africa, Vol. 1; or, The quest, rescue and retreat of Emin, governor of Equatoria » by Henry Morton Stanley
  • In Lemur catta a more complete rudiment of a marsupial pouch is to be met with.
  • Extract from : « The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia » by Frank Evers Beddard
  • In Lemur varius is a hard patch of black skin which may be the remnants of such a gland.
  • Extract from : « The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia » by Frank Evers Beddard
  • In these two respects such animals as a Lemur and a Rhinoceros occupy the extremes.
  • Extract from : « The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia » by Frank Evers Beddard
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019