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  1. cougar love

Definitions

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  1. n. Chiefly Western U.S. See mountain lion.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

  1. n. A large concolorous feline carnivorous quadruped peculiar to America, Felis concolor, belonging to the family Felidæ and order Feræ. It is about as large as the jaguar, but is longer-limbed, and is not so heavy in body. A not unusual weight is 80 pounds; the length over all is about 80 inches, of which the head and body are 50 inches and the tail 30 inches, the standing height at the shoulders 29 inches, and the girth of the chest 27 inches; the color is uniformly tawny, whitening on the under parts, and the tip of the tail is black. This great cat bears much resemblance to an ungrown lioness. It is noted as having the most extensive latitudinal range of any of the Felidæ, its habitat extending from British America to Patagonia. It was formerly common in wooded and especially mountainous parts of the United States, and is still sometimes found in the east, though now most common in the Rocky Mountains and other mountains of the west. Also called puma, panther or “painter,” red tiger, mountain lion, American lion, and catamount.
  2. n. Several species and subspecies of cougar have been recognized by naturalists, the Florida animal being known as Felis coryi and that from the northwest coast region as F. oregonensis. The southern form retains the name F. concolor: the type locality for this species is Brazil.

Wiktionary

  1. n. A mountain lion; Puma concolor.
  2. n. North America, slang A woman of middle age who actively seeks the casual, often sexual, companionship of younger males, typically less than 35 years old; by implication a “sexual predator”.

GNU Webster's 1913

  1. n. (Zoöl.) An American feline quadruped (Felis concolor), resembling the African panther in size and habits. Its color is tawny, without spots; hence writers often called it the American lion. Called also puma, panther, mountain lion, and catamount. See puma.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. large American feline resembling a lion

Etymologies

  1. French cougar, from Brazilian Portuguese suçuarana, perhaps from Tupian (suasuarana ("deerlike animal"), from suasú ("deer"); compare sɨwasuarána ("cervine")) or perhaps form Guaraní (guaçuara). (Wiktionary)
  2. French couguar, alteration (influenced by jaguar, jaguar) of Portuguese çuçuarana, from Tupi suasuarana : suasú, deer + rana, like (from its color). (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)

Examples

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Lists

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Comments

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  • gmoney Older, single woman on the prowl. Jun 9, 2009

  • Steev in current usage a cougar refers to an older woman who prefers the company of younger men.

    Bob found his inexperience with women was an advantage at the cougar bar. Apr 8, 2009

  • john “The Grumman F9F/F-9 Cougar was an aircraft carrier-based fighter aircraft for the United States Navy. Based on the earlier Grumman F9F Panther, the Cougar replaced the Panther's straight wing with a more modern swept wing. The Navy considered the Cougar an updated version of the Panther, despite having a different official name, and thus Cougars started off from F9F-6 upwards.�? More on Wikipedia. Dec 30, 2008

  • yarb Perhaps because I'm not drunk at the moment, I can't help re: drink and attire, but I agree that an element of predation is required to define an older woman as a cougar. I suppose the same effect could be produced by a really staggering degree of naivety in the younger man, rendering any woman a comparative predator. But a simple age difference of, say, 10 to 15 years is not sufficient by itself. Nov 26, 2007

  • uselessness Yes, I'm quite sure cougars are required to wear last year's business attire, and alternate between scotch and mimosa, depending on the day of the week. Nov 26, 2007

  • john I think this is a subject of debate, and that the debates take place mostly in bars. But my understanding is that the coug, like her namesake, is a hunter. An age differential is necessary but not sufficient. I've also heard (drunk) Canadians discourse on finer points, such as attire, preferred drink, etc., but I'll leave those details to someone more in the know than I. Nov 26, 2007

  • uselessness So an older woman who likes younger men (and is in a reciprocating relationship) wouldn't qualify then? Nov 26, 2007

  • john Clearly you have never met a cougar; it's part of the package. If you don't feel preyed upon, she's not a cougar. Or coug, as my Canadian friends more frequently put it. Nov 26, 2007

  • uselessness Preys? Is it nearly so diabolical? Nov 26, 2007

  • john Also, an older woman who preys on younger men. Nov 26, 2007

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‘cougar’ has been looked up 3238 times, loved by 1 person, added to 24 lists, commented on 10 times, and has a Scrabble score of 9.