Gi-răffe', n.

(Synop., § 130), n. [Fr. giraffe, girafe, It. giraffa, Sp. girafa, from Ar. zīrāfah, zorāfah, Egypt. seraphē, i. e. long-neck.] (Zoöl.) An African quadruped, whose fore legs are much longer than the hinder ones; the camelopard. It is the tallest of animals, being sometimes twenty feet from the hoofs to the top of the head.