Meaning & use
rhinoceroses
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“rhinoceroses” is a form of “rhinoceros”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
nounplural
Large, thick-skinned plant-eating mammals of Africa and Asia that have one or two horns on the nose; the plural of rhinoceros.
Grammar: Plural of rhinoceros: one rhinoceros, two rhinoceroses.
Patterns
- a herd of rhinoceroses
- rhinoceroses in something
Rhinoceroses spend much of the day resting in mud to keep cool.
The park is home to several rhinoceroses that are protected by armed rangers.
Both black and white rhinoceroses are threatened by poaching.
Word forms
| singular | rhinoceros |
|---|---|
| plural (alternative) | rhinoceros |
| informal short form | rhinos |
Common combinations
- endangered rhinoceroses
- Endangered rhinoceroses are now guarded day and night in the reserve.
- poach rhinoceroses
- Gangs poach rhinoceroses for their horns.
- a herd of rhinoceroses
- We watched a herd of rhinoceroses cross the dusty plain.
- black rhinoceroses
- Black rhinoceroses are more aggressive than the white kind.
- protect rhinoceroses
- The charity raises money to protect rhinoceroses in Kenya.
Synonyms and how they differ
- rhinos
- Rhinos is the everyday short form and sounds more casual than the full word, which suits scientific or formal writing.
- pachyderms
- Pachyderms is an older, broader term that also covers elephants and hippos, so it is less precise than rhinoceroses.
Word family
- rhinoceros noun
- the singular form
- rhino noun
- informal short form of rhinoceros
- rhinoplasty noun
- surgery that reshapes the nose, from the same Greek word for nose
Commonly confused: rhinoceroses or hippopotamuses?
rhinoceroses vs hippopotamuses
Hippopotamuses are a different large animal that lives near water and has no horns on its nose.
Practice
Which sentence uses the plural correctly?
Choose one answer.
Rhinoceros ends in -s, so the regular plural adds -es to give rhinoceroses. The Latin-style -i ending and the apostrophe form are wrong.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “rhinoceroses”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.