noun
Meaning 1
A person driven by political motives.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Phrase guide
political animal
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.
History
Etymology
Calque of Ancient Greek πολιτικὸν ζῷον (politikòn zōîon), originally a concept taken from Aristotle at various places (History of Animals, Politics), though later as character type – possibly inherited in political families – introduced into everyday politics without philosophical background.
Across languages
Translations
5 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Finnish: poliittinen eläin — person driven by political motives
- French: animal politique — person driven by political motives
- Georgian: პოლიტიკური ცხოველი (ṗoliṭiḳuri cxoveli) — person driven by political motives
- German: politisches Tier — person driven by political motives
- Greek: ζώον πολιτικόν (zóon politikón) — person driven by political motives