ocelot

noun

oce·​lot ˈä-sə-ˌlät  ˈō- 

: a medium-sized American wildcat (Leopardus pardalis synonym Felis pardalis) that ranges from Texas to northern Argentina and has a tawny-yellow or grayish coat dotted and striped with black

Illustration of ocelot

Examples of ocelot in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

From the monitor lizard on the Phoenix freeway to a rare ocelot sighting in southern Arizona, here are the top eight animal videos of the year. —Shelby Slade, The Arizona Republic, 27 Dec. 2024

This ocelot is the seventh to roam Arizona in the last 20 years. —Shelby Slade, The Arizona Republic, 27 Dec. 2024

But to Nansi Guevara, a visual artist in Brownsville, the rocket-making complex is an irrevocable disruption to the shorebirds, ocelots and endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles that nest in the Rio Grande delta. —Rick Jervis, USA TODAY, 18 Dec. 2024

Jaguar and ocelot sightings in 2021 Two of the desert's rarest animals, a jaguar and an ocelot, showed up on trail cameras in the rugged southern Arizona mountains in February 2021. —Zach Bradshaw, The Arizona Republic, 17 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

French, from Nahuatl ōcēlōtl jaguar

First Known Use

1774, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

ocelot

noun

oce·​lot ˈäs-ə-ˌlät  ˈō-sə- 

: a medium-sized American wildcat that is found from Texas to northern Argentina and has a tawny yellow or grayish coat marked with black