Illustration of platypus
platypus
noun
platy·pus ˈpla-ti-pəs 
-ˌpu̇s
-ˌpu̇s plural platypuses also platypi ˈpla-ti-ˌpī
-ˌpē
: a small carnivorous aquatic monotreme mammal (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) of eastern Australia and Tasmania that has a fleshy bill resembling that of a duck, dense fur, webbed feet, and a broad flattened tail
called also duck-billed platypus
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The four-ounce layer is the platypus of run wear, resisting categories. 
Christopher Solomon, Outside Online, 26 Apr. 2022 The authors of the study specifically looked at two platypus specimens kept at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago and one specimen kept at the University of Nebraska State Museum. Theresa Machemer, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Nov. 2020 Some people see a platypus, some people see a frog, and some people see this strange human. Luke Leitch, Vogue, 13 Apr. 2021 The scientists think Orretherium tzen cohabited with Magallanodon baikashkenke, which was thought to have been an evolutionary step between a platypus or marsupial, and dinosaurs such as the long-necked titanosaur. NBC News, 9 Apr. 2021 The springhare — whose coat glows a patchy pinkish-orange under UV light — joins the platypus and other mammals with this perplexing trait. New York Times, 18 Feb. 2021 Two centuries later, the platypus continues to astound scientists. Animals, 30 Dec. 2020 The platypus’s native predators include big fish such as Murray cod, birds of prey and dingos. National Geographic, 11 Nov. 2020 The assessment echoes troubling findings reported earlier this year, which projected that the platypus population could decline between 47 and 66 percent by 2070. Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Nov. 2020 See More
Christopher Solomon, Outside Online, 26 Apr. 2022 The authors of the study specifically looked at two platypus specimens kept at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago and one specimen kept at the University of Nebraska State Museum. Theresa Machemer, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Nov. 2020 Some people see a platypus, some people see a frog, and some people see this strange human. Luke Leitch, Vogue, 13 Apr. 2021 The scientists think Orretherium tzen cohabited with Magallanodon baikashkenke, which was thought to have been an evolutionary step between a platypus or marsupial, and dinosaurs such as the long-necked titanosaur. NBC News, 9 Apr. 2021 The springhare — whose coat glows a patchy pinkish-orange under UV light — joins the platypus and other mammals with this perplexing trait. New York Times, 18 Feb. 2021 Two centuries later, the platypus continues to astound scientists. Animals, 30 Dec. 2020 The platypus’s native predators include big fish such as Murray cod, birds of prey and dingos. National Geographic, 11 Nov. 2020 The assessment echoes troubling findings reported earlier this year, which projected that the platypus population could decline between 47 and 66 percent by 2070. Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Nov. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
New Latin, from Greek platypous flat-footed, from platys broad, flat + pous foot — more at place, foot
First Known Use
1799, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing platypus
Kids Definition
platypus
noun
platy·pus ˈpla-ti-pəs
: a small water-dwelling mammal of Australia that lays eggs and has webbed feet, dense fur, and a bill that resembles that of a duck
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