Meanings
plural markhors
- A large wild goat, Capra falconeri, especially Capra falconeri megaceros, syn. Capra megaceros, having huge flattened spiral horns, found in the western Himalayas.
He was taught the legends of the Mess Plate, from the great grinning Golden Gods that had come out of the Summer Palace in Pekin to the silver-mounted markhor-horn snuff-mull presented by the last C.O. (he who spake to the seven subalterns).
[1889 January], Rudyard Kipling, “Only a Subaltern”, in Under the Deodars (A. H. Wheeler & Co.’s Indian Railway Library; no. 4), Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh: A[rthur] H[enry] Wheeler & Co.; London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, […], →OCLC, page 84
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Classical Persianمَارْخْوَر
- Urduمارخور
- Englishmarkhor
Borrowed from Urdu مارخور (mārxor), from Classical Persian مَارْخْوَر (mārxwar, literally “snake-eater”), from مَار (mār, “snake”) + خْوَر (xwar) (present stem of خْوَرْدَن (xwardan, “to eat”)).
More words from Urdu, Classical Persian
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Dutch schroefhoorngeit
- schroefhoorngeitCapra falconeri
Finnish kierteissarvivuohi
- kierteissarvivuohiCapra falconeri
German Schraubenziege
- SchraubenziegeCapra falconeri
Hindi मारख़ोर, मारखोर
- मारख़ोर (mārxor)Capra falconeri
- मारखोर (mārkhor)Capra falconeri
Hungarian pödröttszarvú kecske
- pödröttszarvú kecskeCapra falconeri
Irish marcár
- marcárCapra falconeri
Persian مارخور, مارخوار
- مارخور (mârxor)Capra falconeri
- مارخوار (mârxâr)Capra falconeri
Polish markur, markur śruborogi
- markurCapra falconeri
- markur śruborogiCapra falconeri
Russian винторо́гий козёл, марху́р
- винторо́гий козёл (vintorógij kozjól)Capra falconeri
- марху́р (marxúr)Capra falconeri
Urdu مارخور
- مارخور (mārxor)Capra falconeri
Cite this entry
markhor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/markhor
“markhor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/markhor. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “markhor,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/markhor.
Source: markhor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.