any artiodactyl mammal of the suborder Ruminantia, the members of which chew the cud and have a stomach of four compartments, one of which is the rumen. The group includes deer, antelopes, cattle, sheep, and goats
2.
any other animal that chews the cud, such as a camel
adjective
3.
of, relating to, or belonging to the suborder Ruminantia
4.
(of members of this suborder and related animals, such as camels) chewing the cud;ruminating
5.
meditating or contemplating in a slow quiet way
ruminant in American English
(ˈrumənənt)
adjective
1.
chewing the cud
2.
of the cud-chewing animals
3.
meditative; thoughtful
noun
4.
any of the suborders (Ruminantia and Tylopoda) of four-footed, cud-chewing artiodactylousmammals: cattle, buffalo, goat, deer, antelope, and giraffe have a stomach with four chambers (the rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum) and the camel, llama, and chevrotain have a stomach with three chambers
Derived forms
ruminantly (ˈruminantly)
adverb
Word origin
L ruminans, prp. of L ruminare, to ruminate < rumen, rumen