opossum

[uh-pos-uhm, pos-uhm]

noun

plural

opossums ,

plural

opossum .

1. a prehensile-tailed marsupial, Didelphis virginiana, of the eastern U.S., the female having an abdominal pouch in which its young are carried: noted for the habit of feigning death when in danger.

2. any of various animals of related genera.

opossum

/ əˈpɒsəm /

noun

1. Sometimes (informal) shortened to: possum. any thick-furred marsupial, esp Didelphis marsupialis ( common opossum ), of the family Didelphidae of S North, Central, and South America, having an elongated snout and a hairless prehensile tail

2. Also called (Austral and NZ): possum. any of various similar animals, esp the phalanger, Trichosurus vulpecula, of the New Zealand bush

Word History and Origins

Origin of opossum¹

First recorded in 1600–10, from Virginia Algonquian ( English spelling) opassom, opussum, aposoum (equivalent to Proto-Algonquian (unattested) wa˙p- “white” + (unattested) -aʔθemw- “dog”)

Word History and Origins

Origin of opossum¹

C17: from Algonquian aposoum; related to Delaware apässum, literally: white beast

Example Sentences

A flea becomes infected when it bites rats, opossums and stray cats that are carrying the disease.

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The noises were no stray opossum or raccoon but a man — reportedly naked and, authorities said, living in the crawl space underneath the woman’s home.

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Officials said one pair had items that would aid them in carrying out thefts — as well as, strangely, wild opossums.

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A beaver’s tail creates a rhythm on the deck and an opossum has a bass fashioned out of a gourd.

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Today, there are only three survivors: the nine-banded armadillo, the Virginia opossum and the North American porcupine.

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