Antilopine

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ænˈtɪləpaɪn/

Definitions

1. Pertaining to or characteristic of an antelope or antelopes
2. Having qualities or features that are typical of an antelope
3. Connected with or resembling the appearance or nature of an antelope

Etymology: Antilopine is a plain formation: the noun "antelope" with the suffix "-ine," which English uses to make adjectives meaning "of, relating to, or resembling" something. Here the base word is "antelope," so the result means "like an antelope." The base noun did not start in English. It comes from New Latin "antilope," a term that scholars of natural history coined as the Latin name for the animal, so the adjective is a second-stage coinage built on a scientific word rather than an ancient one. The "-ine" ending is the same one found in words like "bovine" and "canine," both of which are formed the same way from a Latin stem. Antilopine therefore follows the familiar pattern of describing animal traits in technical language, and it is most often used in zoology and descriptive writing about the animal's build or appearance.