PANTHER

panther. Panther, n. a spotted and very fierce wild beast

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Pan″ther (păn″thẽr), n. [[OE. pantere, F. panthère, L. panthera, Gr. πάνθηρ, prob. fr. Skr. pundrīka a tiger.]] 1. 1. (Zoöl.) A large dark-colored variety of the leopard, by some zoölogists considered a distinct species. It is marked with large ringlike spots, the centers of which are darker than the color of the body.
2. 2. (Zoöl.) In America, the name is applied to the puma, or cougar, and sometimes to the jaguar.
Panther cat (Zoöl.), the ocelot. — Panther cowry (Zoöl.), a spotted East Indian cowry (Cypræa pantherina); — so called from its color.