Illustration of giraffe
- giraffe 1
plural giraffes
1
or plural giraffe
: a large fleet African ruminant mammal (Giraffa camelopardalis) that is the tallest of living quadrupeds and has a very long neck and a short coat with dark blotches separated by pale lines
2
Giraffe
: camelopardalis
Examples of giraffe in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Detroit Zoo welcomed a new giraffe, Nguvu, to the herd, officials announced on Wednesday.
—
Dejanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 14 May 2026
The new enclosure will allow the giraffes to roam inside and outside, eliminating what used to be a long walk from the zoo’s African Savanna to their housing barn.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 14 May 2026
But the memory that will stay with me the longest is waking up, drawing back the curtains, and seeing two majestic giraffes amble right past the window.
—Irenie Forshaw, TheWeek, 11 May 2026
But giraffes may have the capacity to mourn, too, anthropologist Barbara King, the author of How Animals Grieve, wrote in Scientific American in 2013.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 10 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for giraffe
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Dejanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 14 May 2026
The new enclosure will allow the giraffes to roam inside and outside, eliminating what used to be a long walk from the zoo’s African Savanna to their housing barn.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 14 May 2026
But the memory that will stay with me the longest is waking up, drawing back the curtains, and seeing two majestic giraffes amble right past the window.
—Irenie Forshaw, TheWeek, 11 May 2026
But giraffes may have the capacity to mourn, too, anthropologist Barbara King, the author of How Animals Grieve, wrote in Scientific American in 2013.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 10 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for giraffe
Cite this Entry
“Giraffe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/giraffe. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
giraffe
noun
gi·raffe
ˈjə-ˈraf 
plural giraffes or giraffe
: a large swift cud-chewing spotted African mammal with a very long neck that is the tallest of living four-footed animals
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