stoat
Americannoun
-
stoats
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of stoat
1425–75; late Middle English stote < ?
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How does stoat compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
This makes it yet another introduced species like the rat or stoat, with unpredictable behavior.
From Slate ● Aug. 8, 2025
On one predator-free island—home to threatened species such as a flightless parrot called the kakapo—the government spent some $295,000 over eight months tracking down a single stoat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2024
This meant the project has taken a more active approach to trapping, using Europe's first stoat detection dogs on the frontline earlier than expected.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2023
A problem that appears to consist of a single stoat.
From New York Times ● Jun. 5, 2022
But then another shift in things took place, because he realized that they, both girl and stoat, were profoundly afraid of him, as much as if he’d been a ghost.
From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman
"I've seen stoats, I've seen weasels, I've even seen pine martens," said Kate Wollen, from Forestry England.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
Meanwhile, beyond the gates and gawking tourists, stoats will gobble kiwi eggs and possums will devour our rata leaves.
From Slate ● Aug. 8, 2025
“With rats and stoats, they are a lot harder.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2024
Starting in the 1800s, millions were slaughtered by nonnative predators like stoats, a mammal related to the weasel.
From New York Times ● Dec. 4, 2023
After issuing orders to his remaining captains, Cluny, accompanied by a score of assorted rats, weasels, stoats and ferrets, crept off along the course of the ditch.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
