One word each day: Day 14

royaltiffany(62)

Published in

#wordnerd

Words

0

Reading

0 min

Listen

Play

2016-08-28 00:32

Favorite word time !! Today i'll reveal another word that i simply adore it.

Source

hippopotamus

/ˌhɪpəˈpɒtəməs/

Let's hear it..

Thanks to Emma Saying for the pronunciation.

What is it ?

Well , i think we all know what it is , but here is a simple definition according to dictionaries

-it means a large thick-skinned semi aquatic herbivorous African mammal, with massive jaws and large tusks , frequenting rivers and lakes

Origin

The word comes via Latin, from Greek hippopotamos (from hippos meaning horse, potamos meaning river). The first known use of the word appears to be in 1563.

Few facts about hippos

Hippos love water and they spend up to 16 h a day submerged in rivers and lakes. This also protects them from the hot African sun and keeps their bodies cool. They are graceful swimmers and can hold their breath underwater up to 5 minutes. Sometimes they also bask on the shore and secrete an oily red substance (that gave the myth that they sweat blood) that acts as moistener and sunblock.

They love grass, so they may travel around 10 km (that's 6 miles) in the night, just to consume around 36 kg (that's 80 pounds) of grass.

I'll end this post with a cute baby hippo, they usually weight around 45 kg (100pounds) at birth and can suckle both on land and underwater.

Source