polecat
a European mammal, Mustela putorius, of the weasel family, having a blackish fur and ejecting a fetid fluid when attacked or disturbed.: Compare ferret1 (def. 1).
any of various North American skunks.
Origin of polecat
1Words Nearby polecat
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use polecat in a sentence
Indeed, the whole tribe of Weasels is well represented, and the polecat is seen there as well as the Weasel.
Bible Animals; | J. G. WoodInstead of this fringe, the tassels sometimes consists of the tail of a polecat or some other animal.
He commissioned his comrade to bring him offerings of a white wolf, a polecat, some pounded maize, and eagles' tails.
A man is a darned fool to fight a polecat, Cap'n Sproul, and you ought to have known better than to let drive at him as you did.
The Skipper and the Skipped | Holman DayHis teeth are like those of the polecat, though larger and stronger in proportion to its size.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume VI (of 10) | Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
British Dictionary definitions for polecat
/ (ˈpəʊlˌkæt) /
Also called (formerly): foumart a dark brown musteline mammal, Mustela putorius, of woodlands of Europe, Asia, and N Africa, that is closely related to but larger than the weasel and gives off an unpleasant smell: See also sweet marten
any of various related animals, such as the marbled polecat, Vormela peregusna
US a nontechnical name for skunk (def. 1)
Origin of polecat
1Collins 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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