1. Any of several tropical American mammals of the family Myrmecophagidae which lack teeth and feed on ants and termites
   "The anteater used its long sticky tongue to catch insects";
   - New World anteater
    
2. Toothless mammal of southern Africa and Asia having a body covered with horny scales and a long snout for feeding on ants and termites
   "The scaly anteater's scales provide protection from predators";
   - pangolin, scaly anteater
    
3. Nocturnal burrowing mammal of the grasslands of Africa that feeds on termites; sole extant representative of the order Tubulidentata
   "The anteater's long tongue helps it extract termites from their mounds";
   - aardvark, ant bear, Orycteropus afer
    
4. A burrowing monotreme mammal covered with spines and having a long snout and claws for hunting ants and termites; native to Australia
   "The spiny anteater used its long tongue to catch ants";
   - echidna, spiny anteater
    
5. A burrowing monotreme mammal covered with spines and having a long snout and claws for hunting ants and termites; native to New Guinea
   "We spotted a rare New Guinea spiny anteater during our hike";
   - echidna, spiny anteater
    
6. Small Australian marsupial having a long snout and strong claws for feeding on termites; nearly extinct
   "The numbat is also known as the banded anteater"; "The Myrmecobius fasciatus is also known as the banded anteater";
   - numbat, banded anteater, Myrmecobius fasciatus

Derived forms: anteaters

Type of: dasyurid, dasyurid marsupial, edentate, egg-laying mammal, eutherian, eutherian mammal, monotreme, placental, placental mammal

Part of: family Myrmecophagidae, genus Manis, genus Myrmecobius, genus Orycteropus, genus Tachyglossus, genus Zaglossus, Manis, Myrmecobius, Myrmecophagidae, Orycteropus, Tachyglossus, Zaglossus

Encyclopedia: Anteater