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badger

American  
[baj-er] / ˈbædʒ ər /

noun

  1. any of various burrowing, carnivorous mammals of the family Mustelidae, as Taxidea taxus, of North America, and Meles meles, of Europe and Asia.

  2. the fur of this mammal.

  3. Australian.

    1. a wombat.

    2. bandicoot.

  4. (initial capital letter) a native or inhabitant of Wisconsin the Badger State (used as a nickname).

  5. a swablike device for cleaning excess mortar from the interiors of newly laid tile drains.

verb (used with object)

  1. to harass or urge persistently; pester; nag.

    I had to badger him into coming with us.
    Synonyms:
    worry, plague, bedevil, vex, bait, disturb
badger British  
/ ˈbædʒə /

noun

  1. any of various stocky omnivorous musteline mammals of the subfamily Melinae , such as Meles meles ( Eurasian badger ), occurring in Europe, Asia, and North America: order Carnivora (carnivores). They are typically large burrowing animals, with strong claws and a thick coat striped black and white on the head Compare ferret badger hog badger

  2. another name for ratel

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. (tr) to pester or harass

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • unbadgered adjective
  • unbadgering adjective

Etymology

Origin of badger

1515–25; variant of badgeard, perhaps badge + -ard, in allusion to white mark or badge on head

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"He deserves better than being replaced by a badger," he said.

From Barron's • Mar. 12, 2026

Ian called badger culling "a national disgrace" and said: "I would swap this award immediately for the government to rescind all existing badger culling licenses."

From BBC • Feb. 4, 2025

As the German-speaking Pennsylvania Dutch settled in America, the tradition moved stateside with a groundhog replacing the badger.

From BBC • Feb. 2, 2025

“We saw a badger and a fox the other day.”

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 17, 2024

He swung open the bedroom door to find the badger building a tower from the sticks Clare kept beside the hearth for kindling.

From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.