muskrat
See also: musk-rat
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
Perhaps so called for its musky odour and because it resembles a rat, or perhaps called by an Algonquian name like the Abenaki moskwas, with the spelling altered under the influence of the English words musk and rat.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈmʌskɹæt/
Noun
muskrat (plural muskrats)
- A large aquatic rodent (Ondatra zibethicus).
- 1865, Henry David Thoreau, Cape Cod, Chapter IX. "The Sea and the Desert", page 187.
- He also said that minks, muskrats, foxes, coons, and wild mice were found there, but no squirrels.
- 1865, Henry David Thoreau, Cape Cod, Chapter IX. "The Sea and the Desert", page 187.
- Any of several species of shrews in the family Soricidae, especially the Asian house shrew, Suncus murinus
Synonyms
- (Ondatra zibethicus): musquash
- (shrew): musk shrew
Derived terms
Translations
Ondatra zibethicus
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Shrews
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
References
muskrat on Wikipedia.Wikipedia Asian house shrew on Wikipedia.Wikipedia Ondatra zibethicus on Wikispecies.Wikispecies Suncus murinus on Wikispecies.Wikispecies Ondatra zibethicus on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons
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