tigre

tiger

noun TEE-greh Rare

Origin: Latin tigris, from Greek tigris, of Iranian origin.

Usage Note

Tigre is grammatically feminine in standard Italian (la tigre), though in older or regional usage a masculine il tigre also occurs. The plural le tigri is regular. The compound tigre di carta ('paper tiger') is a calque from Chinese, meaning a powerful-seeming but ultimately weak threat.

Examples

"La tigre dorme all'ombra di un albero."

Natural Translation

The tiger sleeps in the shade of a tree.

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