fossa

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈfɒsə/US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(fos′ə)

Inflections of 'fossa' (n): npl: fossae

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
fos•sa1  (fos′ə),USA pronunciation n., pl. fos•sae (fos′ē).USA pronunciation [Anat.]
  1. Anatomya pit, cavity, or depression, as in a bone.
  • Latin: ditch, trench, fosse, short for fossa (terra) dug or dug out (earth), noun, nominal use of feminine of fossus, past participle of fodere to dig
  • 1820–30

fos•sa2  (fos′ə),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. Mammalsa forest-dwelling genetlike mammal, Cryptoprocta ferox, of the civet family, native to Madagascar, with a short coat of white, black, gray, or brown: now rare. Also called fos′sa cat′. 
  • Malagasy)
  • French
  • Malagasy; compare earlier fossane (
  • 1830–40

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
fossa / ˈfɒsə/ ( -sae / -siː/)
  1. an anatomical depression, trench, or hollow area
Etymology: 19th Century: from Latin: ditch, from fossus dug up, from fodere to dig up
'fossa' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
fossarian - fosse - fossula - pit

Forum discussions with the word(s) "fossa" in the title:


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