chimpanzee /t͡ʃɪmˈpæn.zi/ noun2 •Pan troglodytes, a species of great ape native to the savannas and forests of Africa, and believed by biologists to be the closest extant relative to humans along with the bonobo. •(old-fashioned) A great ape of the genus Pan, including the bonobo which was formerly known as the pygmy chimpanzee. formschimpanzees