Caprids

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A group of hoofed mammals belonging to the family Bovidae, which includes goats and sheep
2. Animals characterized by their cloven hooves and ruminant digestive systems, commonly found in mountainous and hilly terrains
3. Mammals noted for their social behavior and adaptability to various habitats, primarily herbivorous and grazing creatures

Etymology: "Caprids" is the plural of "caprid," a term for any member of the family Caprinae's goat-like relatives in the broader Bovidae group: goats, sheep, and their close kin. The word is a plain scientific coinage, built on the taxonomic name "Caprid(ae)," the family name formed from Latin "caper," meaning "goat," with the standard "-idae" ending used for animal families. Biologists turned that family name into an ordinary common noun by dropping the "-ae" ending, so "caprid" now refers to a single animal from that group. The Latin root "caper" is the same stem that gave English "caprine," meaning goat-like, and the zodiac sign Capricorn, whose name combines "caper" with "cornu," meaning horn. Because "caprid" was formed from a scientific family name rather than passed down through everyday speech, it is a fairly recent addition to the vocabulary of zoology and does not come from ancient usage.

Synonyms: goats, sheep, antelopes, ibexes, chamois