Boar

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /bɔː(ɹ)/

Definitions

1. A large, wild swine characterized by tusks and coarse fur, often found in wooded habitats
2. An adult male pig typically living in the wild, noted for its strength and ferocity
3. A formidable wild swine species, notable for its protruding tusks and rugged coat, commonly inhabiting forested areas

Etymology: The English "boar" is one of those words whose ancestry is hidden by its own simplicity: it is a native Germanic word that has been in the language since Old English, long before the Norman French vocabulary arrived. Its Old English form was "bār," which descended from a Proto-West Germanic "*bair," so the animal has been called by essentially this name in English for well over a thousand years. The word then passed through Middle English as "bor" and "boor," spellings that show the vowel gradually settling into the long "o" we now hear as /bɔːr/. The modern spelling with "oa" appeared later, so the pronunciation and the spelling of this ancient word have been drifting apart for centuries.

Synonyms: male pig, hog

Antonyms: sow