panda
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panda¹
- /ˈpændə/ UK
- /ˈpændə/
- [ˈpʰeə̯ndə] ~ [ˈpʰɛə̯ndə]
- /ˈpandə/ British, Northern England, Scotland
- /ˈpæːndə/ Australia
- [ˈpʰæːndə]
- [ˈpʰɛːndə] ~ [ˈpʰeːndə]
- /ˈpɛndə/ New Zealand
- /ˈpɑːn.ɖɑː/ India
Sounds like pander (non-rhotic) · Rhymes with -ændə
Where it comes from
Borrowed from French panda, of unclear ultimate origin but probably from the second element of nigálya-pónya, a local name for the red panda recorded in Nepal and Sikkim by Brian Houghton Hodgson (1800 or 1801 – 1894), an ethnologist, naturalist and the British Resident of Nepal, possibly from Nepali निँगाले (nĩgāle, “relating to a certain species of bamboo”) (the adjectival form of निँगालो (nĩgālo), a variant of निङालो (niṅālo, “Drepanostachyum intermedium, a species of bamboo”)) + a regional Tibetan name for the animal (compare regional Tibetan ཕོ་ཉ (pho nya, “messenger”)).
Attributive uses of sense 2 (“a giant panda”) generally refer to that animal’s distinctive black and white coat colour.
noun pandas
-
The red panda (Ailurus fulgens), a small raccoon-like animal of northeast Asia with reddish fur and a long, ringed tail.
The red panda's history in zoos begins some 40 years after its discovery. The first one to be seen outside of its natural range arrived at London Zoo on 22nd May 1869, [...] On arrival at the zoo, the last surviving panda was given into the care of Abraham Bartlett, the superintendent of the zoo. [.
Similar: bear cat, cat bear, lesser panda, wah
-
Ellipsis of giant panda (“Ailuropoda melanoleuca”).
Similar: mottled bear, panda bear
- Ellipsis of panda car (“a black-and-white police car”). Before the confrontation, the youth sighted a police personnel carrier, two dog patrol vans, a motorway style car, at least two pandas and one unmarked police car.
panda²
- /ˈpʌndə/ UK
- /ˈpæn-/ UK
- /ˈpɑndə/ US
Rhymes with -ʌndə
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Hindi पंडा (paṇḍā) and Punjabi ਪਾਂਡਾ (pāṇḍā), both from Sanskrit पण्डित (paṇḍita, “learned, wise; learned man, pundit, scholar, teacher; Hindu Brahmin who has memorized a substantial proportion of the Vedas”). Doublet of pundit.
noun pandas
- A brahmin who acts as the hereditary superintendent of a particular ghat or temple, and is regarded as knowledgeable in matters of genealogy and ritual. There are therefore in this district no Varna or degraded Brahmans nor are those at all disgraced who officiate in any temple as Pandas.
Panda³
proper noun Pandas
- A South Asian surname.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: red panda, cat bear, lesser panda, giant panda, bear cat, panda bear, ailuropoda melanoleuca, ailurus fulgens, coon bear, bearcat, bunch, banda, particoloured bear, mottled bear, paca-rana, ailuropodin
Translations
Every language
noun Ailuropoda melanoleuca — see also giant panda
| Español | panda |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 판다 panda |
| 日本語 | パンダ panda, 熊猫 kumaneko, イロワケグマ irowakeguma, シロクログマ shirokuroguma |
| 中文 | 熊貓 /熊猫 xióngmāo, 大熊貓 /大熊猫 dàxióngmāo, 貓熊 /猫熊 māoxióng, 大貓熊 /大猫熊 dàmāoxióng |
| हिन्दी | पांडा pāṇḍā |
| Português | panda |
| Français | panda |
| Deutsch | Panda, Pandabär |
| Italiano | panda |
| Ελληνικά | πάντα pánta |
| Română | panda, urs panda |
| Русский | па́нда pánda, бамбуковый медведь bambukovyj medvedʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | gấu trúc |
| العربية | بَنْدَة banda, بانْدا bāndā |
| עברית | פנדה pánda |
noun brahmin who acts as the hereditary superintendent of a particular ghat or temple
| हिन्दी | पंडा paṇḍā |
|---|
Talk about this word "panda." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/panda. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. panda. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/panda "panda." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/panda.Cite this
@misc{panda_2026,
title = {panda},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/panda},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
