skunk

American  

[skuhngk] / skʌŋk /

noun

• skunks,
  plural
• skunk
  plural

1. a small North American mammal, Mephitis mephitis, of the weasel family, having a black coat with a white, V -shaped stripe on the back, and ejecting a fetid odor when alarmed or attacked.

2. any of several related or similar animals.

3. Informal. a thoroughly contemptible person.

4. U.S. Navy Slang. an unidentified ship or target.

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verb (used with object)

1. Slang. to defeat thoroughly in a game, especially while keeping an opponent from scoring.

   The team skunked the favorites in the crucial game.

skunk British  

/ skʌŋk /

noun

1. any of various American musteline mammals of the subfamily Mephitinae, esp Mephitis mephitis ( striped skunk ), typically having a black and white coat and bushy tail: they eject an unpleasant-smelling fluid from the anal gland when attacked

2. informal a despicable person

3. slang a strain of cannabis smoked for its exceptionally powerful psychoactive properties

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verb

1. slang (tr) to defeat overwhelmingly in a game

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• skunk
  plural
• skunks
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of skunk

1625–35, < the Massachusett reflex of Proto-Algonquian *šeka·kwa (derivative of *šek- urinate + -a·kw fox, foxlike animal

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Explanation

A skunk is a small black and white animal that defends itself with a stinky fluid when it feels threatened. Skunks are fairly common, even in suburban and urban places. Skunks are about the same size as cats, with stripes and fluffy tails. They're usually black and white but occasionally gray or brown. If your dog has ever met a skunk face-to-face, or startled one, you know how powerful a skunk's smell can be. It's an odor that's hard to get rid of — and it's strong enough to keep predators like bears far away. Skunk most likely comes from an Abenaki root.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

skunk skunks

Who on Earth would genuinely want Fielder, the human equivalent of a skunk, to crash their last moments with their loved ones as he does his darnedest to stink up the place?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026

But abandoning timeworn procedures meant new complications—including one that led the skunk works team to the Michigan plant at 3 a.m.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026

“The skunk at the party—and it could happen in 2026—would be inflation slowly going up,” Dimon wrote.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 6, 2026

You couldn’t turn on your television without seeing this woman pop up somewhere, sporting a black-and-white skunk wig, preaching her freak-forward gospel.

From Salon ● Feb. 5, 2025

Please write back and say I can so I can tell my mom that a world skunk expert says yes.

From "A Boy Called Bat" by Elana K. Arnold

They are not related to giant pandas but rather closer to raccoons, skunks and weasels.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

They must be hungry—twice they catch skunks, and a sealed house with a skunk inside, loaded or unloaded, is more than this viewer wanted to contemplate.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

The virus is known to infect mammals — from skunks, bears, and cows to people and house pets.

From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2024

“It’s just a postage-stamp suburban yard, but there’s a lot going on here,” Ransdell said of the yard’s abundant wildlife, which counts rabbits, skunks, raccoons and possums as visitors.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2024

“Let your heart have ears, my uncle, my friend. We are not baby skunks, you and I. Time has settled some of our problems.”

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

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