burrow

American  

[bur-oh, buhr-oh] / ˈbɜr oʊ, ˈbʌr oʊ /

noun

• burrows
  plural

1. a hole or tunnel in the ground made by a rabbit, fox, or similar animal to live or hide in.

   Even in winter, chipmunks are active in their burrows and emerge on sunny days.

2. a place of retreat; shelter or refuge.

   His study is his burrow—we have to coax him out for every meal.

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verb (used without object)

• burrows,
  present (3rd person singular)
• burrowed,
  past participle,  past
• burrowing
  present participle

1. to make a hole or passage in, into, or under something.

   This small bird can survive cold Arctic nights by burrowing into the snow.

2. to lodge in an underground hole or tunnel.

   Many rodents burrow over the winter.

3. to hide.

   My cat likes to burrow under the rug and surprise me by jumping out as I walk past.

   Fleeing fame, he burrowed in a small town to focus on his family for a decade or so.

4. to proceed by or as if by digging.

   Buried under sediment, the clams can burrow up to the surface from a depth of 16 inches.

   Stray dogs burrowed through the piles of trash looking for scraps.

5. to penetrate deeply into something so as to investigate, exploit, or influence it, etc..

   In her book on the brain, the writer burrows into the workings of an organ once deemed unknowable.

   These nasty computer viruses are adept at burrowing into your system.

verb (used with object)

• burrows,
  present (3rd person singular)
• burrowed,
  past participle,  past
• burrowing
  present participle

1. to dig holes or passages into (a hill, mountainside, etc.).

   When earthworms burrow the soil, they aerate it and help plant roots to penetrate deeper.

2. to hide or shelter in a safe, snug space.

   The abandoned pup had burrowed itself in the straw of the barn out of pure fear.

   She burrowed the runt piglet in her coat till she had completed her chores in the barn.

3. to make by or as if by digging.

   We burrowed our way through the crowd.

verb phrase

1. burrow in

   1. to penetrate or dig into or under something.

      The beetle’s larvae burrow in and feed on the living tissues just beneath the tree’s bark.

      All my historical research was spurred by this confidence that I could burrow in and find answers.

   2. to enter and become lodged or settled in a place.

      The enemy had taken over the town and burrowed in.

      He was just going to crash at my place for “a few days,” but he’s burrowed in.

   3. (of a political appointee) to be hired as a permanent civil servant when the administration that made the appointment leaves power.

      He was the appointed director of the agency, and later burrowed in as a manager.

burrow British  

/ ˈbʌrəʊ /

noun

1. a hole or tunnel dug in the ground by a rabbit, fox, or other small animal, for habitation or shelter

2. a small snug place affording shelter or retreat

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verb

1. to dig (a burrow) in, through, or under (ground)

2. to move through by or as by digging

   to burrow through the forest

3. (intr) to hide or live in a burrow

4. (intr) to delve deeply

   he burrowed into his pockets

5. to hide (oneself)

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• burrower
  noun
• unburrowed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• burrows
  plural

Participles

• burrowing
  present
• burrowed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• burrow
  simple
• burrows
  simple
• have burrowed
  perfect
• has burrowed
  perfect
• am burrowing
  progressive
• are burrowing
  progressive
• is burrowing
  progressive
• have been burrowing
  perfect progressive
• has been burrowing
  perfect progressive

Past

• burrowed
  simple
• had burrowed
  perfect
• was burrowing
  progressive
• were burrowing
  progressive
• had been burrowing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will burrow
  simple
• will have burrowed
  perfect
• will be burrowing
  progressive
• will have been burrowing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of burrow

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English borow, earlier burh, of uncertain origin; perhaps from Old English gebeorg “refuge,” noun derivative of beorgan “to hide, protect, preserve” (compare late Middle English beri “burrow,” variant of earlier berg “refuge”); akin to Old English burgen “grave” (in the sense “place of protection for a body”); cf. bury

Explanation

Rabbits live in a burrow or a set of tunnels under the earth. They make these tunnels by burrowing, or digging holes with their bodies. Just one letter separates burrow from borrow. To remember the difference, think of the 'u' in burrow as the 'u' for under. Burrows are always underground, and when you burrow under something, you are always going beneath it. Worms can burrow into apples, and on a cold day, you might decide that you'd rather stay in and burrow underneath your blankets.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

burrow burrows burrowed burrowing

In one video, a female marmot chases away a male who got too comfortable in her burrow.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

When you burrow this deep into the subconscious, logic is beside the point.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

Diggers are already clearing parts of the OPP complex, shaking the ruins even as volunteers and families continue to burrow for the bodies of loved ones.

From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026

Nearby, a desert tortoise had emerged from its burrow to munch on some grass — a rare sight that elicited a whoop of joy from Wilcox.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 30, 2026

He carried it back and dropped it in front of Bristle and Runt, who were drowsing at the burrow entrance in the last rays of afternoon sun.

From "Pax" by Sara Pennypacker

Some create burrows in the ground, others use cavities in wood such as tree hollows or fallen branches, and some nest inside plant stems or small existing holes in twigs.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 18, 2026

They are slow-growing and take 50 to 70 years to start producing seeds, which are dispersed primarily by ground squirrels and wood rats who don’t travel far from their burrows.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026

But it is worth noting that “The Drama” burrows into the subject in a way no other film, especially one so widely appealing, has managed to.

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2026

High winds and saturated ground have also toppled trees, removing nesting cavities for birds and burrows for mammals such as badgers and rabbits.

From BBC ● Mar. 1, 2026

The carrots which had been brought in were eaten between friends or carried away to does and families in burrows all over the warren.

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams

Cardiff grabbed their second try when replacement prop Southworth burrowed over from close range, but substitute Schickerling responded in kind with Glasgow's fifth of the evening.

From BBC ● May 8, 2026

Suddenly, the Irish tails were up and replacement prop Michael Milne burrowed over.

From Barron's ● Feb. 5, 2026

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, known for her screenplays with the Merchant-Ivory filmmaking team, also wrote short stories that burrowed into the lives of characters from around the world.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 31, 2025

During Thanksgiving week, from the soft neutral cocoon of my parents’ guest room, I burrowed into an impulsive rewatch of the BBC “Sherlock” — yes, the Benedict Cumberbatch era, all sculptural cheekbones and good outerwear.

From Salon ● Dec. 2, 2025

She dug in her heels and burrowed against the elbows, hips, and shoulder blades of strangers.

From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini

Construction appears ongoing at the site, which includes tunnels burrowing into the granite mountain from the east and west.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Just civilian volunteers burrowing through the jagged piles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

South African prop Koch forced Gareth Thomas to concede a scrum penalty and gained his reward by burrowing over for a try.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026

There is only one other known case of burrowing bees nesting inside a cave, and none where bees used pre-existing fossil structures without altering them.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 3, 2026

The authorities in charge of protecting the burrowing owls would never block construction of the pancake house based on such fuzzy evidence.

From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen

Related Words

• delve