opossum

American  

[uh-pos-uhm, pos-uhm] / əˈpɒs əm, ˈpɒs əm /

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.

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opossum British  

/ 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

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Etymology

Origin of opossum

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

Example Sentences

The second season, which premieres Tuesday, is called “Lost in the Jungle,” and it follows the journeys of an opossum, an iguana and a jumping spider in the Central American rainforest.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 27, 2025

The demolished deer, the obliterated opossum, the wrecked raccoon: This is the detritus of our human-dominated age.

From Slate • May 25, 2024

In the end, though, it was just a "giant opossum that was under the house", she testified.

From BBC • May 9, 2024

Using bioinformatic approaches, the researchers also compared the gene expression programmes in cerebellum cells of human, mouse and opossum.

From Science Daily • Nov. 29, 2023

The opossum waves one of his strange humanlike paws—it’s pinkish and flattish and has long, hairless toes.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz