possum

American  

[pos-uhm] / ˈpɒs əm /

noun

• possums
  plural

1. opossum.

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

---

idioms

1. play possum,

   1. to feign sleep or death.

   2. to dissemble or pretend ignorance.

      The baseball broke the window, but the children played possum when asked who had thrown it.

possum British  

/ ˈpɒsəm /

noun

1. an informal name for opossum

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

3. to pretend to be dead, ignorant, asleep, etc, in order to deceive an opponent

---

possum More Idioms  

1. see play possum.

---

Usage

Plural word for possum The plural form of possum is possums. The plurals of several other singular words that end in -um are also formed in this way, including museum/museums and drum/drums. Possum is pluralized in the regular, or standard, way of adding an -s to the end of the word. In some nouns that end in -um that are derived from Latin, the irregular plural ending -a may be used instead, as in memorandum/memoranda and curriculum/curricula. These nouns are considered irregular nouns. However, the -a ending isn’t valid for possum, because the word derives from the Virginia Algonquian term (with English spelling) opussum. Possa would be an invalid plural for possum.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• possums
  plural

Etymology

Origin of possum

1605–15, short for opossum

Explanation

A possum is a cat-sized nocturnal animal that's known for acting like it's dead when threatened. If you find a white animal with black eyes and ears in your garbage at night, it's probably a possum. The word possum is an informal, regional variation on opossum that's only used in North America. It's especially common in the phrase "playing possum," which refers to the possum's involuntary reaction to fear or harm, falling into a death-like faint, and also to a person who pretends to be innocent. So you might accuse your younger brother, as he shrugs when you ask who ate the last brownie, of playing possum.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

possum possums

Videos of stadium workers capturing a possum in one fan section and spraying gnats on the field during the last few weeks haven’t helped the team’s image.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2026

Found among the stuffed animals at one airport gift shop – an actual living possum.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 19, 2026

"Only in Australia and only at Hobart Airport could a local possum pop in for a quick browse among the souvenirs," an airport spokesperson said.

From Barron's ● Mar. 19, 2026

A tiny possum with one extra-long finger on each hand is one of two species thought to have been extinct that have been discovered in West Papua, in what's been called an "exceptional" scientific discovery.

From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2026

“And it don’t taste like possum feet, neither,” Florida added.

From "Ruby Holler" by Sharon Creech

The remains came from both native and introduced animals, including cows, kangaroos, emus, sheep, pigs, dingoes, rabbits, possums, quolls and swamp rats.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026

The work represents the first direct estimate of a mutation rate for koalas or for any member of the marsupial order Diprotodontia, which also includes wombats, kangaroos and possums.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 17, 2026

In June, Mumbai customs intercepted two passengers arriving from Thailand with dozens of venomous vipers and more than 100 other creatures, including lizards, sunbirds and tree-climbing possums, also arriving from Thailand.

From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2025

Predators destroy an estimated 25 million birds, chicks, and eggs a year, while 30 million possums gobble up 21,000 tons of vegetation a night, depleting the food supply for native animals.

From Slate ● Aug. 8, 2025

For example, in the New Guinea villages where I work, I often see people with pet kangaroos, possums, and birds ranging from flycatchers to ospreys.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond