dormouse
Americannoun
-
dormice
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dormouse
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English dormowse, dormoise; etymology obscure; perhaps Anglo-French derivative of Old French dormir “to sleep,” with final syllable reanalyzed as mouse, but no such Anglo-French word is known; see dormant, mouse
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:
CRT supporters raised £6,000 to fund dormouse surveys and habitat improvements across the charity's farms.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
To test this, they took skeletal muscle samples from two small hibernators -- the Thirteen-lined ground squirrel and the Garden dormouse -- and two large hibernators -- the American black bear and brown bear.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 20, 2024
The squat, dinosaur-eating mammal Repenomamus was about the size of a badger, the early placental mammal Eomaia was about the size of a shrew, and the spiky Spinolestes was about as tiny as a dormouse.
From Slate ● Feb. 20, 2023
Some people can also echolocate by clicking their tongues, a behavior shared by only a few other animals, including tenrecs, a shrew-like animal from Madagascar, and the Vietnamese pygmy dormouse, which is effectively blind.
From National Geographic ● Feb. 3, 2021
The dormouse had faithfully carried out his part in the dreadful scheme; Cluny must surely keep to his word.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
Endangered dormice have been found on a farm that has been working to improve biodiversity and nature habitats.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
Hazel dormice are a European Protected Species and are considered vulnerable to extinction, but their presence is a marker of a healthy, well-connected landscape.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
Suffolk County Council demanded information about the impact on hedgerows, which are home to bats and dormice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 28, 2025
The country is now embarking on an expensive building boom, sparking outrage at unsightly transmission towers and the potential harm to bats, dormice and other local wildlife.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 28, 2025
The rafters of Cavern Hole rang to the excited buzz and laughter of the assembled creatures: hedgehogs, moles, squirrels, woodland creatures and mice of all kinds—fieldmice, hedgemice, dormice, even a family of poor little churchmice.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
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