woodchuck

Noun

WordNet 3.0

Noun (1)

reddish brown North American marmotSynonyms: groundhog Marmota monax

Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

groundhog \ground"hog`\, ground hog \ground" hog`\ (ground"h[o^]g`), n. A reddish brown North American burrowing marmot (Marmota monax), also called the woodchuck. It hibernates in the winter.

Syn: woodchuck, Marmota monax. [WordNet 1.5]

marmot \mar"mot\ (m[aum]r"m[o^]t; 277), n. [It. marmotta, marmotto, prob. fr. L. mus montanus, or mus montis, lit., mountain mouse or rat. See Mountain, and Mouse.]

1.(Zool.) Any rodent of the genus Marmota (formerly Arctomys) of the subfamily Sciurinae. The common European marmot (Marmota marmotta) is about the size of a rabbit, and inhabits the higher regions of the Alps and Pyrenees. The bobac is another European species. The common American species (Marmota monax) is the woodchuck (also called groundhog), but the name marmot is usually used only for the western variety. [1913 Webster +PJC]

2.Any one of several species of ground squirrels or gophers of the genus Spermophilus; also, the prairie dog. [1913 Webster]

Marmot squirrel (Zool.), a ground squirrel or spermophile.

Prairie marmot. See Prairie dog. [1913 Webster]

Woodchuck \Wood"chuck`\, n.

1.(Zool.) A common large North American marmot (Arctomys monax). It is usually reddish brown, more or less grizzled with gray. It makes extensive burrows, and is often injurious to growing crops. Called also ground hog. [1913 Webster]

2.(Zool.) The yaffle, or green woodpecker. [Prov. Eng.] [1913 Webster]