chamaeleon

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Archaic spelling of chameleon.
name
  1. A small circumpolar constellation of the southern sky, imagined to resemble a chameleon, which lies south of the constellations Carina and Musca.

Word forms

chamaeleon chamaeleons

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin chamaeleon (“chamaeleon”), from Ancient Greek χαμαιλέων (khamailéōn). Doublet of chameleon. Named by Dutch explorers Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser and Frederick de Houtman between 1595 and 1597.

Related words

Chamaeleontis

Derived words

Chamaeleon complex Chamaeleon I Chamaeleon II Chamaeleon III
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