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DictionaryhartMale deer
noun

hart

HART/hɑːrt/

An adult male deer, especially a red deer.

The antlered hart stands alert in the clearing with smaller deer behind him.

An adult male deer with large antlers stands alert in a clearing while smaller deer remain behind him.
Etymology
hartOld Englishstag, male red deer

Old English heorot already named a male red deer. Later usage narrowed hart to a mature male after its fifth year, when the crown antler had appeared.

In context

Top 5 Scary Videos presenter1:55
the haunches of a lion, and the cloven feet of a Hart.
Top 5 Most Terrifying Creatures From Celtic Folklore
UCL Lunch Hour Lectures presenter11:47
such as this cosy scene of a hart and its young,
The birds and the bees: animal sex in medieval art - Professor Robert Mills - 1/3/2018

More examples

  • Two harts stand at the edge of the clearing.
  • The painting shows a hart with large, branching antlers.
  • The old tale describes a hunter pursuing a white hart.

Forms

hart · harts

Similar words

stag
The more usual term for an adult male deer.
buck
A broader term for male deer and certain other mammals.