karoo

K5A1R1O1O1
/kəˈru//kəˈruːə//kəˈruː/

noun

Any vast prairie bordering a desert.

OriginAfrikaans Karoo ← Khoekhoe ǃ’Aukarob →
Less commonScrabble 9
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Meanings

karoo1

nounkaroo (plural karoos)

plural karoos

  1. Any vast prairie bordering a desert.
  2. South AfricaAny of the composite bushes typical of the Karoo.

    The herd is kept in an enclosure with wire fence about 7 feet high[…] They eat grass and karoo, but prefer bush of every kind, even eating the bitter aloe.

    1901 July 5, “Domestication of the Eland”, in The Agricultural Journal and Mining Record, volume 4, number 9, page 273

Karoo2

proper noun

alternative Karroo

  1. The vast plain in South Africa that borders the Kalahari Desert.

Origin

karoo · noun

Originates from the Khoikhoi word karo (meaning dry, and hard)

Full word history & related roots →

Karoo · proper noun

  1. Khoekhoeǃ’Aukarob“hardveld”
  2. AfrikaansKaroo
  3. EnglishKaroo

From Afrikaans Karoo, from Khoekhoe ǃ’Aukarob (“hardveld”).

More words from Afrikaans, Khoekhoe

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Koroakoaro
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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