viscacha

American  

[vi-skah-chuh] / vɪˈskɑ tʃə /

Or vizcacha

noun

1. a burrowing rodent, Lagostomus maximus, about the size of a groundhog, inhabiting the pampas of Paraguay and Argentina, allied to the chinchilla.

2. Also called mountain viscacha.  a related rodent of the genus Lagidium, of the Andes, about the size of a squirrel, having rabbitlike ears and a squirrellike tail.

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viscacha British  

/ vɪsˈkætʃə /

noun

1. a gregarious burrowing hystricomorph rodent, Lagostomus maximus, of southern South America, similar to but larger than the chinchillas: family Chinchillidae

2. the mountain chinchilla See chinchilla

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Etymology

Origin of viscacha

1595–1605; < Spanish < Quechua wisk’acha

Example Sentences

Then there is the taruco, a kind of deer, the viscacha, which is a big rat, the otoc, a sort of wild dog, or fox, and the ucumari, a black bear with a white nose.

From Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel, or, the Hidden City of the Andes by Appleton, Victor [pseud.]

With regard to the viscacha it is very interesting to note that these highly-sociable little animals not only live peaceably together in each village, but that whole villages visit each other at nights.

From Mutual Aid; a factor of evolution by Kropotkin, Petr Alekseevich, kniaz

Another ploughman besides the prairie-dog and the viscacha, who isn't popular with farmers—although Thompson Seton calls him "The Master Ploughman of the West"—is the pocket-gopher.

From The Adventures of a Grain of Dust by Hawksworth, Hallam

In their place is the equally destructive viscacha or prairie dog—a much larger animal, probably three or four times the size, having very low, broad head, little ears, and thick, bristling whiskers.

From Through Five Republics on Horseback, Being an Account of Many Wanderings in South America by Ray, G. Whitfield

The chinchilla is a much more beautiful creature than the viscacha, and is a better-known animal, its soft and beautifully-marbled fur being an article of fashionable wear in the cities of Europe.

From The Hunters' Feast Conversations Around the Camp Fire by Reid, Mayne