vole

[ vohl ]

/ voʊl /

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noun

any of several small mouselike or ratlike rodents of the genus Microtus and related genera, having short limbs and a short tail.

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Origin of vole

1795–1805; short for volemouse field mouse, perhaps <Norwegian *vollmus, equivalent to voll field (cf. wold¹) + musmouse

Words nearby vole

volcano, volcanogenic, Volcano Islands, volcanology, Volcker, vole, Volga, Volga River, Volga Tatar, Volgograd, volitant

Other definitions for vole (2 of 2)

vole²

[ vohl ]

/ voʊl /

noun

Cards. the winning by one player of all the tricks of a deal.

Origin of vole

1670–80; <French, derivative of voler to fly <Latin volāre

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use vole in a sentence

Sons grew up to become less likely to form bonds with mates, making another generation of single-parent vole families more likely.
Free Birth Control: Could It Transform Society?|Brian Alexander, Larry Young|October 19, 2012|DAILY BEAST
With most diseases spread by rodents, the mouse or rat or vole is only an intermediary (a “host”) for fleas and lice and the like.
Yosemite Hanta Virus: Nature Strikes Back|Kent Sepkowitz|September 3, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The vole found quite a shoal of fish collected near the reeds; and for a few moments he frolicked about the edge of the shallow.
Creatures of the Night|Alfred W. Rees
More than half-way across the pool a large boulder stood out of the water, but the vole was heading towards the bank above.
Creatures of the Night|Alfred W. Rees

Close beside the river's brink, as the shadows darkened, he found the fresh scent of a female vole.
Creatures of the Night|Alfred W. Rees
By the middle of May, when another vole family of six had arrived, the number of vermin in the valley had perceptibly diminished.
Creatures of the Night|Alfred W. Rees
It was mingled with the faint odour of a field-vole that, doubtless, had been pursued and carried away by its persistent enemy.
Creatures of the Night|Alfred W. Rees

British Dictionary definitions for vole (1 of 2)

vole¹

/ (vəʊl) /

noun

any of numerous small rodents of the genus Microtus and related genera, mostly of Eurasia and North America and having a stocky body, short tail, and inconspicuous ears: family CricetidaeSee also water vole

Word Origin for vole

C19: short for volemouse, from Old Norse vollr field + mus mouse; related to Icelandic vollarmus

British Dictionary definitions for vole (2 of 2)

vole²

/ (vəʊl) /

noun

(in some card games, such as écarté) the taking of all the tricks in a deal, thus scoring extra points

Word Origin for vole

C17: from French, from voler to fly, from Latin volāre

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012