hamster

[ ham-ster ]

/ ˈhæm stər /

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noun

any of several short-tailed, stout-bodied, burrowing rodents, as Cricetus cricetus, of Europe and Asia, having large cheek pouches.

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Origin of hamster

1600–10; <German; compare Old High German hamastro,Old Saxon hamstra weevil

Words nearby hamster

Hampshire Down, Hampstead, Hampton, Hampton Roads, hamshackle, hamster, hamster wheel, hamstring, hamstrung, Hamsun, Hamtramck

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

MORE ABOUT HAMSTER

Where does the word hamster come from?

The name for those adorable, fluffy, little chipmunk-cheeked rodents known as hamsters hails from German. Hamster was borrowed directly from the German Hamster in the early 1600s.

We consider hamsters as the hipsters of the rodent world. Just because we can. For the sheer fun of wordplay. Alas, the -ster suffix in hipster is unrelated to the letters -ster in hamster.

Now that you know how hamsters got their name, why not find out how some of our other most beloved pets got theirs in the slideshow: “Where Do The Words For Our Pets Come From?”

Did you know … ?

While there are nearly 20 species of hamsters, the one most commonly kept as pets is the Syrian hamster, also known as the golden hamster.

Incredibly, Syrian hamsters kept as pets today trace their ancestry—um, “hamcestry”?—back to a single female wild hamster that was caught in Aleppo, Syria, in 1930, which was then bred and spread around the world.

How to use hamster in a sentence

Coronavirus research on hamsters also supports that the effect applies to the current pandemic.
When are two masks better than one for preventing COVID-19?|Tara Santora|January 20, 2021|Popular-Science
He watched the pet hamster and took the girls to Disneyland.
The Jamaican connection|Robert Samuels|January 13, 2021|Washington Post
Scientists gave hamsters more of the virus and they got more sick.
The Importance of Face Masks and the Tragedy of Downplaying Them - Issue 90: Something Green|Kevin Berger|September 23, 2020|Nautilus
In July, researchers published a paper showing that viral dose was related to disease severity in hamsters exposed to the coronavirus.
Cloth Masks Do Protect The Wearer – Breathing In Less Coronavirus Means You Get Less Sick|LGBTQ-Editor|August 20, 2020|No Straight News

Hamsters who were given a higher viral dose got more sick than hamsters given a lower dose.
Cloth Masks Do Protect The Wearer – Breathing In Less Coronavirus Means You Get Less Sick|LGBTQ-Editor|August 20, 2020|No Straight News
After seeing this trick with blocks and toys, children saw it performed with a hamster.
Why Are Millennials Unfriending Organized Religion?|Vlad Chituc|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His tiny hamster buddies drop by and they all wear tiny hats.
Hedgehog Birthday, ‘Frozen Is the New Black,’ and More Viral Videos|Alex Chancey|July 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And in item 6c I get to list my dependents—three children, four dogs, six laying hens, two goldfish, and a hamster.
Up to a Point: I Do My Own Taxes With No Help, Except From a Couple of Bloody Marys|P. J. O’Rourke|April 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In Steve, she plays Mary Magdalene Horowitz, an excitable loser who spends her days confiding in her only friend—a pet hamster.
Oscar Nominees’ Most Embarrassing Roles: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, and More|Marlow Stern|February 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Kim Jong Un, a hamster in the snake pit of the regime, has just created a new adversary.
Kim Jong Un Purges No. 2, Jang Song Thaek|Gordon G. Chang|December 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Its natural disposition and habits are nearly the same as those of the hamster and zisel.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume IX (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
This remarkable little animal threshing-machine is called the hamster.
The Adventures of a Grain of Dust|Hallam Hawksworth
And in the mere matter of the amount of grain handled, the work of the hamster is not to be laughed at.
The Adventures of a Grain of Dust|Hallam Hawksworth
Another advantage is that you can't be robbed of your store as easily as the hamster, for example, frequently is.
The Adventures of a Grain of Dust|Hallam Hawksworth
Among them is the Hamster (Cricetus frumentarius), so widely known for the ravages which it makes among the crops.
Bible Animals;|J. G. Wood

British Dictionary definitions for hamster

hamster

/ (ˈhæmstə) /

noun

any Eurasian burrowing rodent of the tribe Cricetini, such as Mesocricetus auratus (golden hamster), having a stocky body, short tail, and cheek pouches: family Cricetidae. They are popular pets

Word Origin for hamster

C17: from German, from Old High German hamustro, of Slavic origin

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