gray wolf

noun

: a large, broad-headed, wide-muzzled wolf (Canis lupus) that has a dense, heavy coat of usually light brown or brownish gray interspersed with black above and yellowish white below and that was formerly widely distributed throughout North America and Eurasia but is now greatly restricted to the more northerly parts of its range

The only sizable gray wolf population south of Canada and Alaska continues to roam the forest-and-lake country of northern Minnesota.

—Vic Banks

Note: The gray wolf has been considered a threat to livestock and people for hundreds of years and has been wiped out from most of its original range by hunting, trapping, and poisoning.

called also timber wolf

Illustration of gray wolf

Examples of gray wolf in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In May, the Army Corps released a draft of its environmental impact analysis, which looks largely at impacts to water bodies and areas in which the project may have impacts on the habitat of endangered species such as the gray wolf. —Laura Schulte, Journal Sentinel, 3 June 2024

Into the wild den: Five Mexican gray wolf pups born in a New Mexico zoo were placed into a wild den in eastern Arizona as part of a captive breeding program to grow this endangered animal. —Rafael Carranza, The Arizona Republic, 13 May 2024

Like every other gray wolf that was released in western Colorado between December 18 and 23, the wolf had been fitted with a GPS collar. —Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 15 May 2024

Meanwhile, wildlife advocate groups have filed a lawsuit to list the gray wolf in the multi-state northern Rocky Mountain region as either endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. —Caitlin Tan, NPR, 1 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1595, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

gray wolf

noun

: a large wolf of northern regions that is usually gray

called also timber wolf