Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
Flight of the hippo.
—
Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 10 Sep. 2011
Dense bush hides terrifying creatures including the deadliest large land animal on the planet, which kills 20x more people than lions: the hippo.
—Kturnqui, oregonlive, 10 Mar. 2023
Each hippo is to be contained in a special wooden crate that could cost up to $10,000.
—Diana Durán, Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2023
One video of a hippo crushing a pumpkin racked up 2.7 million likes.
—Angela Yang, NBC News, 6 Feb. 2023
The pygmy hippo calf was born in early December at the Metro Richmond facility and keepers describe her as brave, confident and spunky.
—Dana Hedgpeth, Washington Post, 17 Feb. 2023
Finestone received a shock of a different kind as the hippo was removed.
—Byann Gibbons, science.org, 9 Feb. 2023
While the little animal made its social debut over Christmas weekend, the hippo was born on Dec. 6.
—Kelli Bender, Peoplemag, 27 Dec. 2022
Pulling carbon and oxygen isotopes from fossil teeth of the hippo-like Coryphodon, her team found that the animals switched from summer plants and leaves to winter fare like twigs, leaf litter and fungi.
—Brian Handwerk, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Jan. 2023
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word ‘hippo.’ Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1850, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of hippo was
in 1850
Dictionary Entries Near hippo
Cite this Entry
“Hippo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hippo. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023.
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More from Merriam-Webster on hippo
Last Updated:
5 Apr 2023
— Updated example sentences
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
Definitions of hippo
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noun
massive thick-skinned herbivorous animal living in or around rivers of tropical Africa
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I’d say the best is when I was in Africa, I saw a hippo in a house. Someone had a pet hippo. And they’re meant to be one of the most dangerous animals on the planet, and they had one that was sort of just wandering in and out of their house, just sort of roaming about.
Karl Pilkington
PRONUNCIATION OF HIPPO
GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF HIPPO
Hippo is a noun.
A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.
WHAT DOES HIPPO MEAN IN ENGLISH?
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus, or hippo, from the ancient Greek for «river horse», is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae. After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third-largest type of land mammal and the heaviest extant artiodactyl. Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, their closest living relatives are cetaceans from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. The common ancestor of whales and hippos split from other even-toed ungulates around 60 million years ago. The earliest known hippopotamus fossils, belonging to the genus Kenyapotamus in Africa, date to around 16 million years ago. Hippos are recognizable by their barrel-shaped torsos, enormous mouths and teeth, nearly hairless bodies, stubby legs and tremendous size. They are the third-largest type of land mammal by weight: the only heavier species on average are the white and Indian rhinoceroses, typically 1½ to 3½ tonnes, and the elephants, typically weighing 3 to 9 tonnes.
Definition of hippo in the English dictionary
The definition of hippo in the dictionary is an armoured police car.
WORDS THAT RHYME WITH HIPPO
Synonyms and antonyms of hippo in the English dictionary of synonyms
Translation of «hippo» into 25 languages
TRANSLATION OF HIPPO
Find out the translation of hippo to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of hippo from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «hippo» in English.
Translator English — Chinese
河马
1,325 millions of speakers
Translator English — Spanish
hipopótamo
570 millions of speakers
English
hippo
510 millions of speakers
Translator English — Hindi
हिप्पो
380 millions of speakers
Translator English — Arabic
فَرَسُ النَّهْر
280 millions of speakers
Translator English — Russian
бегемот
278 millions of speakers
Translator English — Portuguese
hipopótamo
270 millions of speakers
Translator English — Bengali
জলহস্তী
260 millions of speakers
Translator English — French
hippopotame
220 millions of speakers
Translator English — Malay
Hippo
190 millions of speakers
Translator English — German
Nilpferd
180 millions of speakers
Translator English — Japanese
カバ
130 millions of speakers
Translator English — Korean
하마
85 millions of speakers
Translator English — Javanese
Hippo
85 millions of speakers
Translator English — Vietnamese
con hà mã
80 millions of speakers
Translator English — Tamil
நீர்யானை
75 millions of speakers
Translator English — Marathi
पाणघोडा
75 millions of speakers
Translator English — Turkish
suaygırı
70 millions of speakers
Translator English — Italian
ippopotamo
65 millions of speakers
Translator English — Polish
hipopotam
50 millions of speakers
Translator English — Ukrainian
бегемот
40 millions of speakers
Translator English — Romanian
hipopotam
30 millions of speakers
Translator English — Greek
ιπποπόταμος
15 millions of speakers
Translator English — Afrikaans
seekoei
14 millions of speakers
Translator English — Swedish
flodhäst
10 millions of speakers
Translator English — Norwegian
flodhest
5 millions of speakers
Trends of use of hippo
TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «HIPPO»
The term «hippo» is very widely used and occupies the 21.037 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
FREQUENCY
Very widely used
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «hippo» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of hippo
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «hippo».
FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «HIPPO» OVER TIME
The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «hippo» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «hippo» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.
Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about hippo
3 QUOTES WITH «HIPPO»
Famous quotes and sentences with the word hippo.
I found in one of the tombs an inscription saying, ‘If you touch my tomb, you will be eaten by a crocodile and hippopotamus.’ It doesn’t mean the hippo will eat you, it means the person really wanted his tomb to be protected.
I wanted to use the hippo to get people out of their homes, away from the Internet and the TV, and to explore London with a new perspective.
I’d say the best is when I was in Africa, I saw a hippo in a house. Someone had a pet hippo. And they’re meant to be one of the most dangerous animals on the planet, and they had one that was sort of just wandering in and out of their house, just sort of roaming about.
10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «HIPPO»
Discover the use of hippo in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to hippo and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Augustine of Hippo: A Biography
Classic biography, published 30 years ago. Contains new thoughts in a 2 chapter epilogue.
Peter Robert Lamont Brown, 2000
2
Augustine of Hippo, Selected Writings
Selections from the writings of one of the most influential shapers of the western theological tradition, Augustine of Hippo (354-430), including On the Trinity, The Rule of St. Augustine, The Happy Life, On the Presence of God and other …
Saint Augustine, Mary T. Clark, 1984
3
When Hippo Was Hairy: And Other Tales from Africa
Keenly aware of the needless destruction of wildlife as a result of ever-expanding population growth and the greedy, land-hungry actions of man, the author brings together a collection of fables told by different African tribes that mirror …
Baby Hippo is safe when it is with it’s mother.
Teaches little kids about «behavior» of animals such as hippo «splashes», lion «roars», monkey «swings», etc …
Twin Sisters Productions, 2012
To all the children who have embarked on a journey with hip dysplasia, we hope that you will be able to spread your wings far and wide, and soar farther then you ever imagined.
Gina Jay, Julie Beattie, 2012
7
My Hippo Has the Hiccups: And Other Poems I Totally Made Up
Hilarious poems from the #1 children’s poetry website in the world!
8
Hattie the Dancing Hippo
Hattie the hippo wants to dance, but she tries all kinds of dancing and has problems with all of them.
9
Geoff the Green Hippo: A Children’s Book about Adoption
«Geoff, the Green Hippo, learns that although he may not appear to be the mirror image of his family, he is surrounded with acceptance and undeniable love from a family that was meant to be his.»—P. [4] of cover.
Describes how hippos communicate with each other and how the sounds they make help them survive, and discusses their habitat, diet, and behavior.
10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «HIPPO»
Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term hippo is used in the context of the following news items.
Video: Lion Uses Hippo Carcass as Life Raft
When this lion spotted a tasty hippo carcass in South Africa’s Sabi River, it couldn’t resist trying to get a free meal. However, it soon found itself … «OutdoorHub, Jul 15»
Delhi Zoo loses newborn hippo after animals start fighting
The Delhi Zoo lost its 11-day-old hippopotamus in a fight between male and female hippoptamuses during the weekend. “The baby … «Deccan Herald, Jul 15»
Ohio’s rainy day fund gets $526 million deposit, Cincinnati Zoo’s …
Morning Roundup: Rainy day fund gets $526M, Cincinnati Zoo’s hippo poo problem, Ohio’s worst place to live ‘by far’. Jul 10, 2015, 7:11am … «Columbus Business First, Jul 15»
HGC’s dirtiest job: How to flush away 800 pounds of hippo poo a day
Mark Fisher, senior director of facilities, planning and sustainability at the Cincinnati Zoo, said the new hippo exhibit will be twice the size of the … «Cincinnati Business Courier, Jul 15»
Give the ‘hippo‘ a wide berth
A «hippo» was spotted at naval headquarters in Simon’s Town yesterday and a «buffalo» is expected to follow soon. «Times LIVE, Jul 15»
Tbilisi zoo tragedy: the pathos of an escaped hippo
Who would not be upset by the spectacle of a hippo wandering innocently through the streets until it was shot by a tranquiliser dart? «The Guardian, Jul 15»
Finger of Saint Augustine of Hippo arrives in St. Augustine from …
A holy relic from patron, Saint Augustine of Hippo’s body is resting in the city that bears his name. The Rev. Tom Willis, rector of the Cathedral … «ActionNewsJax.com, Jul 15»
New kids on the block: Lion cubs, a cute baby hippo and exotic birds …
Still to be named, the young hippo is a favourite with visitors. Plus, many inmates have had offspring. Vijay, the white tiger which infamously … «Daily Mail, Jul 15»
Hippo Kills Woman
Maun — Maun police are investigating an incident in which a 56 year old woman was attacked and killed by a hippo at Khwae village on … «AllAfrica.com, Jul 15»
Hippo no longer a ‘Telesure only’ aggregator
JOHANNESBURG – Insurance aggregator, Hippo.co.za says it is actively trying to get new short-term insurers to quote via its platform, as it … «Moneyweb.co.za, Jun 15»
REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Hippo [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/hippo>. Apr 2023 ».
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noun, plural hip·pos.Informal.
QUIZ
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Origin of hippo
By shortening
Words nearby hippo
hipped roof, Hippias, hippie, hippiedom, hippies, hippo, hippocampal, hippocampal gyrus, hippocampus, hip pocket, hippocras
Other definitions for hippo (2 of 3)
Other definitions for hippo (3 of 3)
a combining form appearing in loanwords from Greek, where it meant “horse” (hippodrome); on this model, used in the formation of compound words (hippology).
Also especially before a vowel, hipp-.
Origin of hippo-
<Greek: combining form of híppos; cognate with Latin equus,Old Irish ech,Old English eoh,Sanskrit aśvas,Lithuanian ašvà
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use hippo in a sentence
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Lost on the TechCrunch editing floor from late yesterday is a post we wrote noting the sharp declines in the value of insurtech stocks ahead of the impending public debut of Hippo, another neo-insurance company.
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Justin Thomas could play with a hippo as his partner and not draw that many eyeballs.
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Gift shops in nearby Puerto Triunfo sell hippo keychains and T-shirts.
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Now a study forecasts that the invasive hippo population will swell to almost 1,500 individuals by 2040.
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By mimicking some of the behaviors of long-extinct animals like the region’s giant llama, hippos might actually be productive members of Colombian society.
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I’d never heard of a hippo attacking repeatedly like this, but he clearly wanted me dead.
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I swam towards Evans, but the hippo struck again, dragging me back under the surface.
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I called her “Hippo Girl,” and as I berated her I felt negative attention shift from me to her.
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A moment on the noise: the vuvuzela can only be described as a large animal — like a cow or a hippo — in labor.
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From time to time the slave-drivers would jog them along with a few lashes from a four-cornered «hippo» hide kiboko, or whip.
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This city is named from the ancient Hippo, out of whose ruins, a mile to the southward, it was largely built.
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At a villa outside Hippo, St. Augustine passed three years in the company of eleven pious men.
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Later, Harrisson proposed to accompany me as far as the Hippo depot, bringing the dogs and providing a supporting party.
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Here a depot of provisions and spare gear was made, sufficient to take us back to the Hippo.
British Dictionary definitions for hippo
noun plural -pos informal
Southern African an armoured police car
Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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