ETYM Latin, from Greek; ippos horse + potamios living in the river. Related to Equine.
Large herbivorous, even-toed hoofed mammal of the family Hippopotamidae. The common hippopotamus Hippopotamus amphibius is found in Africa. It averages over 4 m/13 ft long, 1.5 m/5 ft high, weighs about 4,500 kg/5 tons, and has a brown or slate-gray skin. It is an endangered species.
A social and gregarious animal, the hippopotamus spends the day wallowing in rivers or waterholes, only emerging at night to graze. The pygmy hippopotamus Choeropsis liberiensis inhabits W Africa. To the ancient Egyptians, the hippopotamus symbolized both evil and female fertility.(Irregular plural: hippopotamuses, or: hippopotami).
Massive thick-skinned herbivorous animal living in or around rivers of tropical Africa; SYN. hippo, river horse, Hippopotamus amphibius.