desman
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of desman
1765–75; < Swedish, short for desman-råtta muskrat
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.
See Examples For:
With its long sensitive nose and large webbed feet, it is one of only two remaining desman species in the world.
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2021
Another of those highlighted in this update is the semi-aquatic Pyrenean desman, a mammal found only in rivers in Andorra, France, Portugal and Spain.
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2021
The Pyrenean desman population has declined by about half since 2011, mainly because of human impacts on its river habitats, including hydropower plant, dam and reservoir construction and water extraction for agriculture.
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2021
"In addition, the availability of overlapped range margins between the two species might increase, exposing desmans to a potential increased predation risk by otters."
From Salon ● Jan. 23, 2024
"We found that the otters will take advantage of these environmental alterations, while desmans will undergo a drastic reduction of their suitable habitats," the authors write.
From Salon ● Jan. 23, 2024
Mammals with proboscides or inferred proboscides – I’m thinking tapirs, pyrotheres, astrapotheres, the stem-whale Makaracetus, some amynodontid rhinos, some oreodonts, Macrauchenia, dik-diks, saigas, desmans, sengis and so on – have narrow snouts.
From Scientific American ● Nov. 20, 2012
It was true I could repeat anything he said, even tongue twisters like kolokololiteyshchiki perekoloali vikarabkavshihsya vihu- holey, “the church bell casters slaughtered the desmans that had scrambled out.”
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
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.
