noun
or chee·ta also che·tah or chi·ta ˈchēd.ə, -ētə
( -s )
Etymology: Hindi cītā, from Sanskrit citrakāya tiger, panther, from citra variegated, bright, speckled + kāya body; akin to Sanskrit cinoti he gathers, heaps up — more at -hood , poet
: a long-legged swift-moving somewhat doglike African and formerly Asiatic cat ( Acinonyx jubatus ) about the size of a small leopard that has a tawny pelt spotted with dark brown or black and blunt nonretractile claws and is often tamed and trained to run down antelopes and other game
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