waitoreke

Meaning

Noun

• A cryptid of New Zealand, said variously to be a mammal resembling an otter, platypus or beaver, and to live in rivers.

Origin

• Borrowed from Maori. The etymology is disputed. The first syllable is probably from Proto-Eastern Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Nuclear Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ. toreke can be found in dictionaries.