What does "panda" mean?
The red panda (Ailurus fulgens), a small raccoon-like animal of northeast Asia with reddish fur and a long, ringed tail.
Panda
/ˈpændə/ name, noun, slang
name, noun, slang ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The red panda (Ailurus fulgens), a small raccoon-like animal of northeast Asia with reddish fur and a long, ringed tail.
- Grammar: panda is listed as name, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: ailuropoda melanoleuca, ailurus fulgens, lesser panda, panda bear.
- Usage evidence: Nancy had never seen a giant panda before.
How to use "panda"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "panda" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "panda" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "panda" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "panda" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "panda" is acting as name, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "ailuropoda melanoleuca" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "panda", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The red panda (Ailurus fulgens), a small raccoon-like animal of northeast Asia with reddish fur and a long, ringed tail. archaic
"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. [...] The feeding instructions that came with the panda said it should be given milk, a little rice and grass each day. [...] Bartlett felt that the suggested diet was not adequate and set out to find what the animal would accept; [...] Unfortunately, although it ate well, this first zoo red panda was not destined for a long life, it died suddenly during the night of 12 December 1869, a little over 6 months after its arrival."
- 2 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. Hinduism
"There are therefore in this district no Varna or degraded Brahmans nor are those at all disgraced who officiate in any temple as Pandas."
- 3 reddish-brown Old World raccoon-like carnivore; in some classifications considered unrelated to the giant pandas wordnet
- 4 Ellipsis of giant panda (“Ailuropoda melanoleuca”). abbreviation, also, alt-of, attributive, colloquial, ellipsis
- 5 large black-and-white herbivorous mammal of bamboo forests of China and Tibet; in some classifications considered a member of the bear family or of a separate family Ailuropodidae wordnet
Show 1 more definition
- 6 Ellipsis of panda car (“a black-and-white police car”). British, abbreviation, alt-of, colloquial, ellipsis
"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."
Proper Noun
- 1 A South Asian surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Nancy had never seen a giant panda before."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "panda"?
Common synonyms include: ailuropoda melanoleuca, ailurus fulgens, lesser panda, panda bear, animal, antelope.
How do you use "panda" in a sentence?
Nancy had never seen a giant panda before.
How do you pronounce "panda"?
Pronounced /ˈpændə/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
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.
Etymology 2
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.