catamountain
/kætəˈmaʊntɪn/
catamountain means A leopard, a panther (Panthera pardus); also, an ocelot (Leopardus pardalis). Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 88 out of 100.
catamountain is pronounced /kætəˈmaʊntɪn/.
Why “catamountain” is a great word
CATAMOUNTAIN — [Noun] A leopard, panther, or similar large wild cat; also, an archaic term for a person who lives in the mountains. From Late Middle English *catamountain*, a reduced form of the Middle English phrase *catte of the mountayne*, *cate of þe mounttaynne* (literally "cat of the mountain"). Unlike "cougar," which specifically denotes the American puma, or "mountaineer," which suggests a skilled alpine profession, catamountain evokes an archaic, feral geography. It is the silhouette that detaches itself from the rockface to become a spotted flank, the cold yellow gaze from a high ledge, and the grizzled hermit whose outline merges with the crag—a name that conflates beast and human as solitary sovereigns of the high, indifferent rock.
Etymology
From Late Middle English catamountain, from Middle English catte of the mountayne, cate of þe mounttaynne (“leopard, panther”).
noun
- A leopard, a panther (Panthera pardus); also, an ocelot (Leopardus pardalis).“Goe, charge my Goblins that they grinde their ioynts / With dry Convultions, ſhorten vp their ſinewes / With aged Cramps, & more pinch-ſpotted make them, / Than Pard, or Cat o' Mountaine.”
- A man living in the mountains.