Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Either of two chiefly domesticated ruminant mammals of the genus Camelus, the Bactrian camel or the dromedary, having a humped back and long neck, and used in northern Africa, the Middle East, and Asia as a beast of burden and a source of wool, milk, and meat.
  • noun A device used to raise sunken objects, consisting of a hollow structure that is submerged, attached tightly to the object, and pumped free of water.
  • noun Sports A spin in figure skating that is performed in an arabesque or modified arabesque position.
  • noun A tan or yellowish brown.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A large ruminant quadruped of the family Camelidœ, genus Camelus, used in Asia and Africa as a beast of burden.
  • noun A water-tight structure placed beneath a ship or vessel to raise it in the water, in order to assist its passage over a shoal or bar, or to enable it to be navigated in shallow water.
  • noun A French imitation of this fabric; a warm and light woolen cloth with a gloss, but having long hairs standing up upon it. Dict. of Needlework.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Zoöl.) A large ruminant used in Asia and Africa for carrying burdens and for riding. The camel is remarkable for its ability to go a long time without drinking. Its hoofs are small, and situated at the extremities of the toes, and the weight of the animal rests on the callous. The dromedary (Camelus dromedarius) has one bunch on the back, while the Bactrian camel (Camelus Bactrianus) has two. The llama, alpaca, and vicuña, of South America, belong to a related genus (Auchenia).
  • noun (Naut.) A water-tight structure (as a large box or boxes) used to assist a vessel in passing over a shoal or bar or in navigating shallow water. By admitting water, the camel or camels may be sunk and attached beneath or at the sides of a vessel, and when the water is pumped out the vessel is lifted.
  • noun (Zoöl.) the ostrich.
  • noun (Zoöl.) the mantis.
  • noun (Bot.) a low, leguminous shrub (Alhagi maurorum) of the Arabian desert, from which exudes a sweetish gum, which is one of the substances called manna.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A beast of burden, much used in desert areas, of the genus Camelus.
  • noun A light brownish color, tan.
  • noun Loaded vessels lashed tightly, one on each side of a another vessel, and then emptied to reduce the draught of the ship in the middle.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun cud-chewing mammal used as a draft or saddle animal in desert regions

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Old English and from Anglo-Norman cameil, both from Latin camēlus, from Greek kamēlos, of Semitic origin; see gml in Semitic roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Middle English, via Old Northern French camel (Old French chamel, modern chameau), from Latin camēlus, from Ancient Greek κάμηλος (kamēlos), from Proto-Semitic *gamal-; compare Arabic جمل (jamal) and Hebrew גמל (gamál).

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Examples

Comments

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  • Apparently, the doctors' favourite cigarette!

    December 17, 2007

  • I don't smoke cud-chewing saddle mammals.

    September 19, 2008

  • Cats, you're aware, can repose in a chair,

    Chickens can roost upon rails;

    Puppies are able to sleep in a stable,

    And oysters can slumber in pails.

    But no one supposes

    A poor Camel dozes -

    Any place does for me!

    - Charles Carryl, 'The Plaint Of The Camel'.

    December 5, 2008

  • Gimel (3rd letter in Hebrew alphabet, pudenda, vagina

    July 24, 2009

  • Argent, a camel passing through a ford of water proper -- heraldic blazoning of the arms of the town/parish of CAMELFORD, Cornwall.

    October 3, 2011