PREDATOR

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does predator mean? 

• PREDATOR (noun)
  The noun PREDATOR has 2 senses:

1. someone who attacks in search of booty

2. any animal that lives by preying on other animals

  Familiarity information: PREDATOR used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PREDATOR (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Someone who attacks in search of booty

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

marauder; piranha; predator; vulture

Hypernyms ("predator" is a kind of...):

aggressor; assailant; assaulter; attacker (someone who attacks)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "predator"):

moss-trooper (a marauder and plunderer (originally operating in the bogs between England and Scotland))

Sense 2

Meaning:

Any animal that lives by preying on other animals

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

predator; predatory animal

Hypernyms ("predator" is a kind of...):

animal; animate being; beast; brute; creature; fauna (a living organism characterized by voluntary movement)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "predator"):

carnivore (any animal that feeds on flesh)

 Context examples 

Conservation management of species of concern on islands often involves getting rid of invasive predators.

(A decade after the predators have gone, Galapagos Island finches are still being spooked, University of Cambridge)

"There is something about the snailfish that allows them to adapt to living very deep. Beyond the reach of other fish, they are free of competitors and predators," Linley said in the statement.

(Three New Species of Fish Found at Bottom of Pacific Ocean, VOA)

Heliconians have evolved to produce their own cyanide which makes them highly poisonous and they have distinct and brightly coloured wings which act as a warning to would-be predators.

(Butterflies are genetically wired to choose a mate that looks just like them, University of Cambridge)

When threatened, the dusky Arion slug secretes an unusual glue, making itself a difficult target for predators.

(New studies may bring slug-made glues closer to use in medicine, Wikinews)

For snowshoe hares and 20 other species across the northern hemisphere, the white winter coats that once rendered them nearly invisible to predators now make them conspicuous to lynx, foxes, weasels and hawks.

(Twenty-one species adapted to disappear in the snow. Then, the snow disappeared, National Science Foundation)

"People think they're seed predators, but it turns out they actually do disperse a lot of seeds."

(Thai Elephants Help Spread Jungle Fruit's Seeds, Sadie Witkowski/VOA)

The seven-spotted ladybird is so easy to see that if every predator had to eat one before they discovered its foul taste, it would have struggled to survive and reproduce.

(Birds learn from each other’s ‘disgust’, enabling insects to evolve bright colours, University of Cambridge)

The offshore reefs provide habitat and feeding grounds for large numbers of fish, including top predators such as sharks and groupers.

(Microbes reflect the health of coral reefs, National Science Foundation)

A new study provides insight into how the small brains of mantis shrimp — fierce predators with keen vision — may process and integrate visual information with other sensory input.

(How mantis shrimp make sense of the world, National Science Foundation)

This research highlights the value of long-term studies for understanding the impact of environmental change on long-lived marine predators such as penguins, said Jennifer Burns, a program director in NSF's Office of Polar Programs.

(Whaling and climate change lead to 100 years of feast or famine for Antarctic penguins, National Science Foundation)