panda

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: pan=da

CIDE DICTIONARY

panda, n. 

•  A small Asiatic mammal (Ailurus fulgens) having fine soft fur, which inhabits the mountains of Northern India. It was once thought to be related to the bears, but is now believed to be more closely related to raccoons. It has reddish-brown fur on the back and sides, and black fur on the legs and underside. Called also the lesser panda.  [1913 Webster]
•  The giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), a bearlike black-and white mammal now found wild only in the central forests of China, which lives mainly on on bamboo. It is an endangered species, and is a popular attraction in the few zoos which have bveen able to obtain specimens.  [PJC]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

panda, n.
1 (also giant panda) a large bearlike mammal, Ailuropoda melanoleuca, native to China and Tibet, having characteristic black and white markings.
2 (also red panda) a Himalayan racoon-like mammal, Ailurus fulgens, with reddish-brown fur and a long bushy tail.

Idiom

panda car Brit. a police patrol car (orig. white with black stripes on the doors).

Etymology

Nepali name