ferret
1a domesticated, usually red-eyed, and albinic variety of thepolecat, used in Europe for driving rabbits and rats from their burrows.
to drive out by using or as if using a ferret (often followed by out): to ferret rabbits from their burrows;to ferret out enemies.
to hunt with ferrets.
to hunt over with ferrets: to ferret a field.
to search out, discover, or bring to light (often followed by out): to ferret out the facts.
to harry, worry, or torment: His problems ferreted him day and night.
to search about.
Origin of ferret
1Other words from ferret
- fer·ret·er, noun
- fer·ret·y, adjective
- un·fer·ret·ed, adjective
- un·fer·ret·ing, adjective
Words Nearby ferret
Other definitions for ferret (2 of 2)
a narrow tape or ribbon, as of silk or cotton, used for binding, trimming, etc.
Origin of ferret
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use ferret in a sentence
A decade ago, scientists funded by the National Institutes of Health used ferrets to engineer a highly lethal flu virus.
Two researchers responded and were funded, and they discovered genetic changes that regulated H5N1 transmissibility in ferrets.
“We never created a supervirus.” Ralph Baric explains gain-of-function research. | Rowan Jacobsen | July 26, 2021 | MIT Technology ReviewHis incarceration had made him less social and he was now like a lonely ferret without much to say.
Illuminated in the beam of the headlights, the ferret and the ranger stared at each other for one and a half minutes, before it padded away into the night.
While there are no immediate plans to reintroduce the ferret at TBNG, it may well be the best existing site across the species’ range in 12 western states, Mexico, and Canada.
ferret is a carefully chosen comparison, implying diligence but absolutely no imagination.
What I saw was a careful and ingenious reporter ferret out a fraud with care.
Pressuring Journalists Won’t Protect Transgender People | James Kirchick | January 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThat alone provides a powerful incentive for civil society to try to ferret out the numbers.
U.S. Drone Program Needs to Be Accompanied by Hard Facts on Civilian Deaths | Daniel Klaidman | November 8, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTThey were used to ferret rebel fighters out of their strongholds.
Reich, the former American diplomat, says he thinks Morales might just be crazy enough to ferret Snowden to La Paz.
Is Edward Snowden Bound for Bolivia? Evo Morales Sure Seems to Hope So | Eli Lake, Mac Margolis | July 2, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTA soldier is not a conjurer that he should be handed over a fully laden ship and told to ferret out a fuse key.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume 2 | Ian HamiltonWhere you like; there must be two or three remaining in the neighborhood, so ferret them out and bring them here.
Maupassant Original Short Stories (180), Complete | Guy de MaupassantOh, if he'd a notion I was within twenty miles of him, he'd ferret me out to pay off old grudges.
North and South | Elizabeth Cleghorn GaskellI stuck my hand down, and it was given a vicious bite by a white, pink-eyed ferret Paul was carrying there.
Tramping on Life | Harry KempHe was endeavoring to pierce the darkness with his ferret eyes, when the chimes of a neighboring church clock struck twelve.
British Dictionary definitions for ferret (1 of 2)
/ (ˈfɛrɪt) /
a domesticated albino variety of the polecat Mustela putorius, bred for hunting rats, rabbits, etc
an assiduous searcher
black-footed ferret a musteline mammal, Mustela nigripes, of W North America, closely related to the weasels
to hunt (rabbits, rats, etc) with ferrets
(tr usually foll by out) to drive from hiding: to ferret out snipers
(tr usually foll by out) to find by persistent investigation
(intr) to search around
Origin of ferret
1Derived forms of ferret
- ferreter, noun
- ferrety, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for ferret (2 of 2)
ferreting
/ (ˈfɛrɪt) /
silk binding tape
Origin of ferret
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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