elephantus
[ɛ.ɫɛˈpʰan.tʊs]
The English word elephant is translated into Latin as elephantus, elephas, barrus or Lūca bōs.
Meaning: mammal (noun)
Ways to say it
| Latin | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| elephantus | [ɛ.ɫɛˈpʰan.tʊs] (Classical Latin, narrow) [e.leˈfan.tus] (narrow) |
|
| elephas | [ˈɛ.ɫɛ.pʰaːs] (Classical Latin, narrow) [ˈɛː.le.fas] (narrow) |
|
| barrus | [ˈbar.rʊs] (Classical Latin, narrow) [ˈbar.rus] (narrow) |
masculine |
| Lūca bōs | feminine, masculine |
All these terms refer to the mammal known as an elephant.
Which one should you use?
Both elephas and elephantus are used in Classical Latin. Elephas keeps the Greek form, while elephantus is the regular Latin second-declension form.
How does it change in a sentence?
elephas is a third-declension masculine noun, whereas elephantus is a second-declension masculine noun. The form barrus is a masculine noun and Lūca bōs can be either feminine or masculine.
Did you know?
- In Roman times, elephants were not native to Italy and were primarily encountered as war animals or exotic gifts from foreign kings.
- The word elephas was used in Latin to describe not just the animal, but also the ivory material from its tusks.
Examples in context
- Elephas animal ingens est.An elephant is an enormous animal.Tatoeba #5048380 by alexmarcelo, translation #268255 by CK
- Elephas animal maximum est.An elephant is a very large animal.Tatoeba #5048392 by alexmarcelo, translation #268257 by CK
- Elephas animal robustum est.An elephant is a strong animal.Tatoeba #5048379 by alexmarcelo, translation #268249 by CK
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucius and Lucia are looking at a drawing in a book.
- LuciusEstne hic elephantus?Is this an elephant?
- LuciaIta, hic elephantus est.Yes, this is an elephant.
- LuciusElephantus est magnus.The elephant is big.
- LuciaVerum, est animal mirabile.True, it is a wonderful animal.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “elephant” translations and entries elephantus, elephas, barrus, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries barrus, elephantus, elephas, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
