# rhino

/ˈɹaɪˌnoʊ/ (US) · /ɹˈaɪnəʊ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/rhino
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. the animal

noun · CEFR A2 · Informal

a short way of saying rhinoceros — a large, heavy animal with one or two horns on its nose.

For teachers: a colloquial clipping of rhinoceros, referring to the large perissodactyl ungulate.

- We saw a mother rhino and her calf during the safari trip.
- Conservationists are working tirelessly to protect the black rhino from poachers in the national park.

Usage: The plural can be either 'rhinos' or 'rhino'.

### 2. money

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Slang

an old-fashioned word for money.

For teachers: a slang term for money or cash. This sense is archaic and rarely encountered outside of nineteenth-century literature.

- The old story mentioned a man who was short of rhino and needed a loan.
- In the Victorian underworld, 'ready rhino' was a common expression for having immediate access to liquid assets.

Teaching tip: This sense is archaic; learners should only use 'rhino' to refer to the animal in modern contexts.

## Examples

- The rhino stood quietly in the tall grass.
- Wildlife rangers work around the clock to protect the rhino population from illegal hunting in the national park.
- Conservation efforts have seen a slight recovery in certain rhino subspecies, though habitat loss remains a critical threat to their long-term survival in the wild.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.