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chameleon

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chameleon


  3  definitions  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Chameleon  \Cha*me"le*on\  (k[.a]*m[=e]"l[-e]*[u^]n),  n.  [L. 
  Chamaeleon,  Gr  chamaile`wn,  lit.,  ``ground  lion;''  chamai` 
  on  the  ground  +  le`wn  lion.  See  {Humble},  and  {Lion}.] 
  (Zo["o]l.) 
  A  lizardlike  reptile  of  the  genus  {Cham[ae]leo},  of  several 
  species,  found  in  Africa,  Asia,  and  Europe.  The  skin  is 
  covered  with  fine  granulations;  the  tail  is  prehensile,  and 
  the  body  is  much  compressed  laterally,  giving  it  a  high  back 
 
  Note:  Its  color  changes  more  or  less  with  the  color  of  the 
  objects  about  it  or  with  its  temper  when  disturbed.  In 
  a  cool,  dark  place  it  is  nearly  white,  or  grayish;  on 
  admitting  the  light,  it  changes  to  brown,  bottle-green, 
  or  blood  red,  of  various  shades,  and  more  or  less 
  mottled  in  arrangment.  The  American  chameleons  belong 
  to  {Anolis}  and  allied  genera  of  the  family 
  {Iguanid[ae]}.  They  are  more  slender  in  form  than  the 
  true  chameleons,  but  have  the  same  power  of  changing 
  their  colors. 
 
  {Chameleon  mineral}  (Chem.),  the  compound  called  {potassium 
  permanganate},  a  dark  violet,  crystalline  substance, 
  {KMnO4},  which  in  formation  passes  through  a  peculiar 
  succession  of  color  from  green  to  blue,  purple,  red,  etc 
  See  {Potassium  permanganate},  under  {Potassium}. 
 
  From  WordNet  r  1.6  [wn]: 
 
  chameleon 
  n  :  lizard  of  Africa  and  Madagascar  able  to  change  skin  color 
  and  having  a  projectile  tongue  [syn:  {chamaeleon}] 
 
  From  Easton's  1897  Bible  Dictionary  [easton]: 
 
  Chameleon 
  a  species  of  lizard  which  has  the  faculty  of  changing  the  colour 
  of  its  skin.  It  is  ranked  among  the  unclean  animals  in  Lev. 
  11:30,  where  the  Hebrew  word  so  translated  is  _coah_  (R.V., 
  "land  crocodile").  In  the  same  verse  the  Hebrew  _tanshemeth_, 
  rendered  in  Authorized  Version  "mole,"  is  in  Revised  Version 
  "chameleon,"  which  is  the  correct  rendering.  This  animal  is  very 
  common  in  Egypt  and  in  the  Holy  Land,  especially  in  the  Jordan 
  valley. 
 




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