moose

Etymology 1

Earlier mus, moos, from an Eastern Algonquian language name for the animal, such as Massachusett moos, mws, Narragansett moos or Penobscot mos (cognate to Abenaki moz), from Proto-Algonquian *mo·swa (“it strips”), referring to how a moose strips tree bark when feeding: compare Massachusett moos-u (“he strips, cuts smooth”).

noun

1. (US, Canada) The largest member of the deer family (Alces americanus, sometimes included in Alces alces), of which the male has very large, palmate antlers.
   We saw a moose at the edge of the woods.
2. Any of the extinct moose-like deer of the genera Cervalces and Libralces.
   Europe’s giant beavers lived at the same time as the first moose, Libralces gallicus. 2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 152
3. (figurative, derogatory, colloquial) An ugly person.

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Japanese むすめ (“girl”).

noun

1. (US, military, slang) An Asian girl taken as a lover.
   In military bases in the rear areas it was common for soldiers to have a moose. 2005, Rupert Nelson, Like the Rings of a Tree, page 279
   Even the lowest ranked serviceman, because of his salary, benefits, and status as an American occupationaire, could afford to “maintain a 'Moose' and still take care of his other obligations. 2011, Michael Cullen Green, Black Yanks in the Pacific, page 75