possum

[pos-uh m]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR possum ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

opossum.

Australian. any of various phalangers, especially of the genus Trichosurus.

Idioms

play possum, Informal.

to feign sleep or death.
to dissemble or pretend ignorance: The baseball broke the window, but the children played possum when asked who had thrown it.

Origin of possum

1605–15, Americanism; short for opossum

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for possum

wombat, koala, kangaroo, possum, opossum, wallaby, bandicoot, euro

Examples from the Web for possum

Contemporary Examples of possum

Two hours east of Dallas, sun-drenched granite cliffs loom high above the cloudy waters of Possum Kingdom Lake.
The World Series of Cliff Diving Takes Itself Very Seriously
Hampton Stevens
June 29, 2014
He was also called “Possum,” because he looked like one, especially when he grinned.
George Jones Would Break Your Heart Every Time
Malcolm Jones
April 26, 2013

Historical Examples of possum

You'd say she's as 43 gray as a 'possum, an' as wrinkled as a burnt boot.
Faro Nell and Her Friends
Alfred Henry Lewis
The 'possum is found from Connecticut to Florida and westerly to California.
Boy Scouts Handbook
Boy Scouts of America
That is why Possum pretends to be dead when he finds the hunters after him.
Myths and Legends of the Great Plains
Unknown
"There is one spoon missing," said Mr. Possum, who had been counting the spoons.
Sandman's Goodnight Stories
Abbie Phillips Walker
It's more of a coma, something like the hibernation of a bear or a possum.
Islands of Space
John W Campbell

British Dictionary definitions for possum

possum

noun

an informal name for opossum (def. 1)

Also called: phalanger Australian and NZ any of various Australasian arboreal marsupials, such as Trichosurus vulpecula (brush-tailed phalanger), having dense fur and a long tail: family Phalangeridae

play possum to pretend to be dead, ignorant, asleep, etc, in order to deceive an opponent

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

Word Origin and History for possum

1610s, shortened form of opossum. Phrase play possum is first recorded 1822.

Idioms and Phrases with possum

possum

see play possum.