: any of a genus (Bradypus) of sloths having three clawed digits on each foot and eight or nine vertebrae in the neck compare two-toed sloth

Examples of three-toed sloth in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Will Levis has the pocket awareness of a three-toed sloth. Michael Salfino, The Athletic, 24 Nov. 2024 It has sometimes been called sloth fever because scientists first investigating the virus found it in a three-toed sloth, and believed sloths were important in its spread between insects and animals. Michael Dorgan, Fox News, 28 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1847, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of three-toed sloth was in 1847

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Cite this Entry

“Three-toed sloth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/three-toed%20sloth. Accessed 28 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

three-toed sloth

noun
ˌthrē-ˌtōd-
: any of a genus of sloths having three claws on each foot compare two-toed sloth

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