meerkat

American  

[meer-kat] / ˈmɪər kæt /

noun

meerkats plural

1. suricate.

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meerkat British  

/ ˈmɪəˌkæt /

noun

1. any of several South African mongooses, esp Suricata suricatta ( slender-tailed meerkat or suricate ), which has a lemur-like face and four-toed feet

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• meerkats
  plural

Etymology

Origin of meerkat

Dutch: literally, monkey, apparently equivalent to meer ( see mere ²) + kat cat

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

meerkat meerkats

Artificial intelligence lets these glasses identify objects in our field of view, like a ficus tree or a Southern African meerkat.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

One of the most familiar cooperative breeders to a human audience might be the meerkat, thanks to the documentary series Meerkat Manor.

From Slate ● May 10, 2026

Some of the opposition against Marsh, both from the council and her online critics, focused on her taking a meerkat to the pub and sharing a bed with it.

From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2026

"When one meerkat calls, a neighbour is likely to reply," he adds.

From Science Daily ● May 20, 2024

I tossed hundreds of meerkat morsels at him that I would gladly have eaten myself.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

Yet we can learn some things from meerkats and the other animals who raise their young together.

From Slate ● May 10, 2026

Humans appear to be much closer to animals like meerkats and beavers than to most other primates when it comes to exclusive mating, according to new research from the University of Cambridge.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 22, 2026

Humans are a bit like meerkats when it comes to pairing up, according to a study that examined the monogamous lifestyles of different species.

From BBC ● Dec. 10, 2025

Are the meerkats that appear near the end of the story real or a hallucination?

From Los Angeles Times ● May 9, 2025

In his jaws were a number of dead meerkats, which he ate during the night.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel