From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishanimalan‧i‧mal1 /ˈænəməl/ ●●● S1 W1 noun [countable] 1 HBAa living creature such as a dog or cat, that is not an insect, plant, bird, fish, or person furry little animalswild/domestic/farm animals cattle, sheep, and other domestic animals The cosmetics have not been tested on animals. Beth is an animal lover (=someone who likes animals).2 any living creature that is not a plant or a person He can’t stand cruelty to animals of any sort. the animal welfare movement in Britain the enormous diversity of the animal kingdom3 HBAany living creature, including people Man is a highly intelligent animal.4 informalVIOLENT someone who behaves in a cruel, violent, or very rude way Football hooligans are just animals.5 → a (very/completely/entirely) different animal6 → a political/social etc animalTHESAURUSanimal a living thing such as a dog, cow, or tiger, but not an insect, fish, or birdfarm animals such as cows, sheep, and pigsPeople are becoming more concerned about animal welfare.creature /ˈkriːtʃə $ -ər/ an animal – used especially when describing a particular animal’s characteristics or when referring to animals generallyThe cheetah is a magnificent creature.all the living creatures in the seabeast an animal, especially a large or dangerous oneTo most people, lions are savage beasts.a wild beastliving thing an animal considered as one of a group of things that grow and then die, including humans and plantsThe only living things we saw were dogs and cats.species /ˈspiːʃiːz/ a group of animals whose members are similar and can breed together to produce young animalsSeven species of birds of prey have been observed.mammal an animal that drinks milk from its mother’s body when it is youngHumans, dogs, and whales are all mammals.vertebrate a living creature that has a backboneviruses that affect chickens, monkeys, and most other vertebratesinvertebrate a living creature that does not have a backboneearthworms and other small invertebrates
Examples from the Corpus
animal• Animals contract the infection by eating feed that has been supplemented by the tissues of other infected animals.• We saw it as an opportunity to harvest an animal and help out Fish and Game.• My gut felt like I had reached my hand into a dying animal.• Data on experimental animals show that it may be the long term consequence of glomerular haemodynamic abnormalities induced by long term hyperglycaemia.• farm animals• We are merely animals, creatures that are brought kicking and screaming into this world and then die.• Glycogen is found in a variety of animal tissues, particularly the liver.• Apparently the animal can go all winter without food, but it periodically needs real sleep.• Go round the animals rather than walking through a group of them.• The animals are, and he's got his comeuppance.• wild animals in the jungle• Get away from me, you animal!animal lover• An adventurer and an animal lover, Goodall was also 23 and beautiful.• Actress and animal lover, Damaris Hayman is leading a campaign to keep the animal collection in the Park.• Perhaps it was the universal bond between animal lovers and vets that made it so easy to become part of the community.• But the plan was slammed by animal lovers yesterday.• The foundation helps animal lovers buy horses directly from their holding pens.• Would that as many animal lovers were as quick to speak and defend dumb animals instead of staying silent as so many do.• And, unlike some animal lovers, she likes people.• At Beckford in Worcestershire fifty hedgehogs have been brought in by worried animal lovers.the animal kingdom• With man effort not often matched in the animal kingdom, he overcame that considerable obstacle.• Molluscs Molluscs belong to the largest phylum in the animal kingdom and are a very varied group of animals.• This we shall see to be as true of man as of any of his relatives in the animal kingdom.• Upon the balance between them depends the enormous variety of societies seen in the animal kingdom.• Such a crude lie can surely be perceived by that genius of the animal kingdom, humans.• The circles were full up, and therefore man was not a part of the animal kingdom at all.• They are the tanks of the animal kingdom, and they come in many forms.• It ignores the obvious discriminations which we make between similar treatment of different species within the animal kingdom.animalanimal2 adjective 1 → animal urges/instincts etc2 → animal products/fats/protein etcExamples from the Corpus
animal• There are constant reminders that we, too, are animal beings and part of nature, not mere observers.• We have also prepared many animal carcasses or parts of them as study specimens.• She also was a benefactor to other health support groups and animal charities.• George Mendonca, a topiary gardener and real-life Edward Scissorhands who clips animal forms from plants.• Both cut to pieces anything animal in their path, and both have acquired a mystique of terror in their own land.• Road protesters, animal liberationists, that sort of thing.• In the end, plant and animal life is choked to death.• And, accordingly, the two retrievers trained by De Cagny for the film came from an animal rescue program.Origin animal1 (1300-1400) Latin animalis “having life”, from anima “soul” 