▪ I. lige(a)r, ligence
obs. ff. ledger, ligeance.
▪ II. liger
(ˈlaɪgə(r))
[f. lion n. + tiger n.]
The offspring of a lion and a tigress. Cf. tigon.
| 1938 Times 28 May 7/7 Two young Whipsnade-bred tigresses have been sent to London with the intention that they shall be paired with lions to produce the so-called ligers. 1948 Time 17 May 27 Daisy, a Salt Lake City zoo tigress, gave birth to the first known liger..ever born in the U.S. 1964 Sunday Mail Mag. (Brisbane) 8 Nov. 4/6 A ‘Liger’ is the term applied to the result of a cross between a lion and a tigress. 1975 Times 17 Sept. 7/3 The world's only living liger, the cross-breed of a male lion and a female tiger, has died at a Japanese zoo. It was the last of a litter of three born on September 8. |