polecat
Use Polecat in a sentence
noun, plural pole·cats ( especially collectively ) pole·cat.
1.
a European mammal, Mustela putorius, of the weasel family, having a blackish fur and ejecting a fetid fluid when attacked or disturbed. Compare ferret1 ( def 1 ).
2.
any of various North American skunks.
Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English polcat, perhaps equivalent to Middle French pol, poul chicken (< Latin pullus) + cat1
1275–1325; Middle English polcat, perhaps equivalent to Middle French pol, poul chicken (< Latin pullus) + cat1
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To polecat
Collins
World English Dictionary
polecat (ˈpəʊlˌkæt) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n , pl -cats, -cat | |
| 1. | See also sweet marten Also called (formerly): foumart a dark brown musteline mammal, Mustela putorius, of woodlands of Europe, Asia, and N Africa, that is closely related to but larger than the weasel and gives off an unpleasant smell |
| 2. | any of various related animals, such as the marbled polecat,Vormela peregusna |
| 3. | (US) a nontechnical name for skunk |
| [C14 polcat, perhaps from Old French pol cock, from Latin pullus, + | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Polecat
is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
polecat
1320, first element is probably Anglo-Fr. pol, from O.Fr. poule "fowl, hen," so called because it preys on poultry. The other alternative is that the first element is from O.Fr. pulent "stinking," for obvious reasons. Originally the European Putorius foetidus; also applied to related U.S. skunks since
1688.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Example sentences
And towering over such marauders as the otter, polecat, bat and fox are two magnificent species of eagle.
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