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View synonyms for ferret

ferret

1

[ fer-it ]

noun

  1. a domesticated, usually red-eyed, and albinic variety of the polecat, used in Europe for driving rabbits and rats from their burrows.


verb (used with object)

  1. to drive out by using or as if using a ferret (often followed by out ):

    to ferret rabbits from their burrows;

    to ferret out enemies.

  2. to hunt with ferrets.
  3. to hunt over with ferrets:

    to ferret a field.

  4. to search out, discover, or bring to light (often followed by out ):

    to ferret out the facts.

  5. to harry, worry, or torment:

    His problems ferreted him day and night.

verb (used without object)

  1. to search about.

ferret

2

[ fer-it ]

noun

  1. a narrow tape or ribbon, as of silk or cotton, used for binding, trimming, etc.

ferret

1

/ ˈfɛrɪt /

noun

  1. a domesticated albino variety of the polecat Mustela putorius , bred for hunting rats, rabbits, etc
  2. an assiduous searcher
  3. black-footed ferret
    a musteline mammal, Mustela nigripes , of W North America, closely related to the weasels
“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. to hunt (rabbits, rats, etc) with ferrets
  2. trusually foll byout to drive from hiding

    to ferret out snipers

  3. trusually foll byout to find by persistent investigation
  4. intr to search around
“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

ferret

2

/ ˈfɛrɪt /

noun

  1. silk binding tape
“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
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Derived Forms

  • ˈferrety, adjective
  • ˈferreter, noun
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Other Words From

  • ferret·er noun
  • ferret·y adjective
  • un·ferret·ed adjective
  • un·ferret·ing adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of ferret1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English feret, furet, from Middle French furet, fuiret, from Vulgar Latin furittus (unrecorded), equivalent to fūr “thief” + -ittus -et

Origin of ferret2

First recorded in 1570–80; alteration of Italian fioretto “floss silk,” literally, “little flower,” equivalent to fior(e) + -etto diminutive ending; flower, -et
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Word History and Origins

Origin of ferret1

C14: from Old French furet , from Latin fur thief

Origin of ferret2

C16: from Italian fioretti floss silk, plural of fioretto : a little flower, from fiore flower, from Latin flōs
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Example Sentences

A decade ago, scientists funded by the National Institutes of Health used ferrets to engineer a highly lethal flu virus.

Two researchers responded and were funded, and they discovered genetic changes that regulated H5N1 transmissibility in ferrets.

His incarceration had made him less social and he was now like a lonely ferret without much to say.

Illuminated in the beam of the headlights, the ferret and the ranger stared at each other for one and a half minutes, before it padded away into the night.

While there are no immediate plans to reintroduce the ferret at TBNG, it may well be the best existing site across the species’ range in 12 western states, Mexico, and Canada.

Ferret is a carefully chosen comparison, implying diligence but absolutely no imagination.

What I saw was a careful and ingenious reporter ferret out a fraud with care.

That alone provides a powerful incentive for civil society to try to ferret out the numbers.

They were used to ferret rebel fighters out of their strongholds.

Reich, the former American diplomat, says he thinks Morales might just be crazy enough to ferret Snowden to La Paz.

A soldier is not a conjurer that he should be handed over a fully laden ship and told to ferret out a fuse key.

Where you like; there must be two or three remaining in the neighborhood, so ferret them out and bring them here.

Oh, if he'd a notion I was within twenty miles of him, he'd ferret me out to pay off old grudges.

I stuck my hand down, and it was given a vicious bite by a white, pink-eyed ferret Paul was carrying there.

He was endeavoring to pierce the darkness with his ferret eyes, when the chimes of a neighboring church clock struck twelve.

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Ferreroferret badger