Pard
/pɑːrd/noun
A leopard or panther, especially in older or poetic usage.
Did you know?In medieval English poetry, *pard* could evoke not just a leopard but a symbol of wild, spotted danger, and it survives today in fossilized phrases like *leopard* and the rare *black leopard* sense of *panther*.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bʰerǵʰ-
“To shine, gleam, or be bright; the distant root behind the spotted, gleaming imagery associated with the animal name.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
párdos
“A leopard or spotted wild cat.”
Late Latin
Latin
pardus
“A leopard.”
Old French
Old French
pard
“A leopard.”
Middle English
English
pard
“A leopard; also used in poetic and heraldic contexts.”
Modern English
English
pard
“A leopard, now rare and literary.”