An ape is a large, intelligent primate like a chimpanzee, gorilla, or orangutan that does not have a tail.
From Old English "apa," whose deeper origin is uncertain but likely very old in Germanic languages. It originally referred to monkeys and apes in general, before science separated them more clearly.
Humans are technically apes too, but we rarely call ourselves that in everyday speech. The fact that we avoid the word for ourselves shows how language can protect our pride more than our accuracy.
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