abada

A1B3A1D2A1
/əˈbɑːdə/

noun

The rhinoceros.

OriginPortuguese abada ← Malay badak →
Scrabble 8
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Meanings

nounabada (plural abadas)

plural abadas

  1. obsoleteThe rhinoceros.
  2. human sciencesA herbivorous mythological creature of the Central African Congo, similar to the unicorn. Its horns are said to be an antidote to poisons, and it has brown fur, two crooked horns and a boar's tail.

    It is certain that the unicorn is not to be confounded with the abada, about which they usually dispute; this one may see by the difference of their names, as well as by the difference of their body and parts […]

    1864, William Winwood Reade, Savage Africa, page 373

Origin

  1. Malaybadak“rhinoceros”
  2. Portugueseabada“female rhinoceros”
  3. Englishabada

From Portuguese abada (“female rhinoceros”), from Malay badak (“rhinoceros”).

More words from Portuguese, Malay

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

baaad
Cite this entry
APA

abada. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abada

MLA

“abada.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abada. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “abada,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abada.

Source: abada on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.