terrier

¹ American  

[ter-ee-er] / ˈtɛr i ər /

noun

1. any of several breeds of usually small dogs, used originally to pursue game and drive it out of its hole or burrow.

2. (initial capital letter) a surface-to-air, two-stage antiaircraft missile.

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terrier ² American  

[ter-ee-er] / ˈtɛr i ər /

noun

Law.

1. a book or document in which are described the site, boundaries, acreage, tenants, etc., of certain lands.

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Terrier ¹ British  

/ ˈtɛrɪə /

noun

1. informal a member of the British Army's Territorial and Volunteer Reserve

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terrier ² British  

/ ˈtɛrɪə /

noun

1. any of several usually small, active, and short-bodied breeds of dog, originally trained to hunt animals living underground

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terrier ³ British  

/ ˈtɛrɪə /

noun

1. English legal history a register or survey of land

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Etymology

Origin of terrier¹

1400–50; < Middle French, short for chien terrier literally, dog of the earth (< Medieval Latin terrārius; terra, -ier ² ); so called because used to start badgers from their burrows; replacing late Middle English terrere < Anglo-French ( -er ² )

Origin of terrier²

1470–80; < Middle French, short for registre terrier register of land (< Medieval Latin terrārius; terra, -ier ² ); replacing earlier terrere < Anglo-French ( -er ²

Example Sentences

Min, a champion rat terrier, ate green beans leading up to the recent American Pulling Alliance Championship.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 20, 2025

Barks from Stellar, a yippy terrier named after the Incubus song, give way to a cozy living area complete with vinyl records and Amy Winehouse and Yves Saint Laurent coffee table books.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 11, 2025

Horner, is the man whose in-your-face approach led Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff to describe him as a "yapping little terrier".

From BBC • Jul. 23, 2025

The ban means there are now five banned types of dog in Britain - pit bull terrier, Japanese Tosa, Doga Argentino and Fila Brasileiro, as well as XL bully.

From BBC • Mar. 31, 2025

The hand-tinted photographs in the hallway, the needlepoint pillows on the sofa, the ever-changing grocery list stuck to the refrigerator under a magnet in the shape of a Boston terrier.

From "We Are Okay" by Nina LaCour