Meanings
plural gavials
- alternativeAlternative form of gharial.
Although human remains and jewelry have been found in their stomachs, gavials are not as fierce as many alligators and crocodiles.
2006, Lynn Huggins-Cooper, Ravenous Reptiles, page 192 more examples
Cuvier had begun studying the fossils of crocodiles found near Caen and Honfleur in France. (They were, in fact, gavials, fine-jawed crocodiles that are nowadays found in India).
2002, Pierre-Henri Gouyon, Jean-Pierre Henry, Jacques Arnould, “Gene Avatars: The Neo-Darwinian Theory of Evolution”, in Tiiu Ojasoo, transl., [1997, Les avatars du gène: La théorie néodarwinienne de l'évolution], page 28Gavials (or gharials) are found only on the northern Indian subcontinent, where most are riverine, being best adapted to calmer areas in deep fast-flowing rivers.
2011, Joseph T. Springer, Dennis Holley, An Introduction to Zoology: Investigating the Animal World, page 415
Synonyms & antonyms
nounlarge fish-eating Indian crocodilian with a long slender snout
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Hindiघड़ियाल
- Englishgavial
From Hindi घड़ियाल (ghaṛiyāl). Doublet of gharial.
More words from Hindi
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
gavial. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gavial
“gavial.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gavial. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “gavial,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gavial.
Source: gavial on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.