aardvark

See also: aard-vark

English

Two aardvarks

Wikispecies

Alternative forms

• aard-vark, erdvark

Etymology

Borrowed from Afrikaans aardvark (obsolete), erdvark, from aarde (“earth”), (from Dutch, from Middle Dutch aerde) + vark (“pig”), (from Middle Dutch varken). Early European colonists in South Africa noticed that the animal was similar to a pig, while "aarde" hints at the animal's habit of burrowing.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɑːd.vɑːk/
• IPA^(key): /ˈɑɹd.vɑɹk/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

aardvark (plural aardvarks)

1. The nocturnal, insectivorous, burrowing, mammal Orycteropus afer, of the order Tubulidentata, somewhat resembling a pig, common in some parts of sub-Saharan Africa. [First attested in the late 18^th c.]

   The aardvark burrows in the ground and feeds mostly on termites, which it catches with its long, slimy tongue.

2. (slang, particularly in the southeast US) A silly or credulous person who is prone to mistakes or blunders.

   I walked into the wrong bathroom like a total aardvark.

Synonyms

• (mammal): African anteater, antbear, ant bear or ant-bear, anteater, earth pig
• (silly person): fool

Translations

mammal

• Afrikaans: erdvark (af), (obsolete) aardvark (af)
• Amharic: ጃርት (ǧart)
• Arabic: خِنْزِير اَلْأَرْض m (ḵinzīr al-ʔarḍ)
• Armenian: աֆրիկյան մրջնակեր (afrikyan mrǰnaker)
• Assamese: আৰ্ডৱাৰ্ক (ardwark)
• Azerbaijani: borudişli
• Bavarian: erdfàggi
• Bengali: আর্ডভার্ক (arḍobhark), দক্ষিণ আফ্রিকার জন্তুবিশেষ (dokkhin aphrikar jontubiśeś)
• Bulgarian: мравояд (bg) m (mravojad)
• Catalan: porc formiguer m
• Cherokee: ᏙᏒᏓᎵ ᏗᎦᏰᏍᎩ (dosvdali digayesgi)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 土豚 (zh) (tǔtún)

• Czech: hrabáč m, hrabáč kapský m
• Danish: jordsvin (da) n
• Dutch: aardvarken (nl) n
• Erzya: модатуво (modatuvo)
• Esperanto: orikteropo, terporko
• Estonian: tuhnik (et)
• Finnish: maasika (fi)
• French: oryctérope (fr) m
• Galician: porco formigueiro m, oricteropo m
• German: Erdferkel (de) n
• Greek: μυρμηγκοφάγος (el) m (myrmigkofágos)
• Hadza: usai
• Hausa: dagbi
• Hebrew: שנבוב m
• Hungarian: földimalac (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Icelandic: jarðsvín n
• Interlingua: orycteropo
• Irish: arcán talún (ga) m, alpaire seangán m
• Italian: oritteropo m
• Japanese: 土豚 (ja) (tsuchibuta)
• Korean: 땅돼지 (ttangdwaeji)
• Latin: orycteropus m
• Limburgish: eerdverke
• Lithuanian: vamzdžiadančiai
• Malay: ardvark (ms)
• Maltese: orikteropu m
• Manx: muc hallooin f
• Navajo: bisóodi bíchį́į́h nineezí
• Norman: couochon d’tèrre m
• Norwegian: jordsvin n
• Persian: خوک خاکی (xuk-e xâki)
• Polish: mrównik (pl) m, prosię ziemne (pl) n
• Portuguese: oricterope (pt) m, porco-da-terra (pt) m, jimbo m, porco-formigueiro (pt) m, timba (pt) f, timbo (pt) m, aardvark (pt) m
• Romanian: porcul termitelor m
• Russian: трубкозу́б (ru) m (trubkozúb)
• Scottish Gaelic: mathan-sheangan m
• Spanish: cerdo hormiguero (es) m
• Swahili: (nc 1/2) mhanga
• Swedish: jordsvin (sv) n
• Thai: อาร์ดวาร์ก
• Tswana: thakadu (nc 9/10)
• Turkish: karıncayiyen (tr), aardvark (tr), borudişli
• Welsh: baedd daear m, grugarth f
• Wolof: njaxat bi

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Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch aardvarken, from aarde (“earth, soil”) +‎ varken (“pig”).

Noun

aardvark (plural aardvarke)

1. Obsolete form of erdvark.

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Portuguese

Noun

aardvark m (plural s)

1. aardvark (mammal)

Synonyms

• oricterope, porco-da-terra, jimbo, porco-formigueiro, timba, timbo