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car·a·cal

(kărə-kăl′)

A wildcat (Caracal caracal) of Africa and southwestern Asia having short fawn-colored fur and long tufted ears.

[French, from Ottoman Turkish qaraqūlāq : qara, black (akin to Old Turkic qarā; probably akin to Mongolian qara, and perhaps to Japanese kuro-) + qūlāq, ear (akin to Old Turkic qulqaq, qulxaq; perhaps akin to Mongolian qulki, earwax).]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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