polecat

American  

[pohl-kat] / ˈpoʊlˌkæt /

noun

• polecats,
  plural
• polecat
  plural

1. a European mammal, Mustela putorius, of the weasel family, having a blackish fur and ejecting a fetid fluid when attacked or disturbed.

2. any of various North American skunks.

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polecat British  

/ ˈpəʊlˌkæt /

noun

1. 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

2. any of various related animals, such as the marbled polecat, Vormela peregusna

3. a nontechnical name for skunk

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• polecat
  plural
• polecats
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of polecat

1275–1325; Middle English polcat, perhaps equivalent to Middle French pol, poul “chicken” (< Latin pullus ) + cat ( def. )

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

polecat polecats

Foot fired back, famously comparing Tebbit to a "semi-house-trained polecat" during a debate on parliamentary business.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2025

Other species that have gotten infected around the world include a badger, bobcat, coyote, dolphin, ferret, fisher cat, fox, lynx, opossum, otter, pig, polecat, porpoise, raccoon, raccoon dog and multiple minks and seals.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 22, 2023

Two bobcats in Wisconsin, a coyote pup in Michigan and skunks in Canada have also tested positive for the virus, as have foxes, otters, a lynx, a polecat and a badger in Europe.

From New York Times ● Jun. 18, 2022

I can’t deny that I’ve watched the polecat sequence upwards of a dozen times, but Miller’s film truly comes alive in Furiosa’s howl of desperation, and in Max’s noble disappearance into the throng.

From The Guardian ● May 29, 2018

Pantalaimon flew to the floor and instantly became a polecat, arching his back against her little white ankle socks.

From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman

The exhilaration of the polecats sequence in “Fury Road” — that fact that there’s such a thing as polecats — made the series a constant source of glee.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 16, 2024

So far, erythrism has been identified in dozens of species, including reef manta rays, leopards, and European polecats.

From National Geographic ● Feb. 12, 2024

One introductionist I spoke to, Graham Wellstead, has released hundreds of polecats into the English countryside, helping this once-persecuted small carnivore spread across the south and east of the country once again.

From The Guardian ● Oct. 13, 2020

Then the moment your back is turned, they're fighting like demented polecats and blaming the other for starting it.

From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2014

"Ha' you any rats, mice, polecats, or weasels, or any old cows sick o' the measles?"

From "The Shakespeare Stealer" by Gary L. Blackwood

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