Illustration of orangutan
orangutan
noun
orang·u·tan
ə-ˈraŋ-ə-ˌtaŋ 
-ˈraŋ-gə-,
-ˌtan
: any of several largely herbivorous arboreal great apes (Pongo pygmaeus, P. abelii, and P. tapanuliensis) of Borneo and Sumatra that are about ²/₃ as large as the gorilla and have brown skin, long sparse reddish-brown hair, and very long arms
Examples of orangutan in a Sentence
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In 1906, a man born in what was then the Belgian Congo, Ota Benga, was displayed at the Bronx Zoo in a cage with an orangutan.
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Hana Kiros, The Atlantic, 6 Feb. 2026
Our ancestral subfamily split from its family about twelve to fourteen million years ago, losing the orangutan in the process and thus giving us a rough date stamp.
—Literary Hub, 7 Jan. 2026
Trek through the Danum Valley rainforest, cruise the Kinabatangan River, and spot orangutans and pygmy elephants.
—Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 31 Dec. 2025
The baby turns out to be an orangutan named Blanche.
—Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Dec. 2025
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Hana Kiros, The Atlantic, 6 Feb. 2026
Our ancestral subfamily split from its family about twelve to fourteen million years ago, losing the orangutan in the process and thus giving us a rough date stamp.
—Literary Hub, 7 Jan. 2026
Trek through the Danum Valley rainforest, cruise the Kinabatangan River, and spot orangutans and pygmy elephants.
—Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 31 Dec. 2025
The baby turns out to be an orangutan named Blanche.
—Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for orangutan
Cite this Entry
“Orangutan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/orangutan. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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