Related Searches
on Ask.com
Nearby Entries
Definition of possum - 5 dictionary results
Possum Control
Los Angeles Pest Removal & Control. Call For Free Estimate 866-497-3143
www.ratbustersusa.com
Los Angeles Pest Removal & Control. Call For Free Estimate 866-497-3143
www.ratbustersusa.com
pos⋅sum
[pos-uh
m] 
—Idiom
| 3. | play possum, Informal.
|
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source
|
Link To possum
| pos·sum (pŏs'əm) n. Chiefly Southern U.S. An opossum. [Short for opossum.] Since English is a language that stresses some syllables and not others, weakly stressed syllables, especially those preceding strong stresses, are dropped at times. This process, called aphesis when it occurs at the beginning of a word, is more common in regional American dialects than in the more conservative Standard English, which tends to retain in pronunciation anything reflected in spelling. Although many American dialects feature aphesis, it is most famous in the dialects of the South, where it yields pronunciations such as count of for (on) account of, tater for potato, possum for opossum, and skeeter for mosquito. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Possum
Pos"sum\, n. [Shortened from opossum.] (Zo["o]l.) An opossum. [Colloq. U. S.] To play possum, To act possum, to feign ignorance, indifference or inattention, with the intent to deceive; to dissemble; -- in allusion to the habit of the opossum, which feigns death when attacked or alarmed.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
Language Translation for : possum
Spanish:
zarigüeya,
Italian:
opossum,
Japanese:
possum
1613, shortened form of opossum (q.v.). Phrase play possum is first recorded 1822.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
possum
see play possum.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
