noun / verb
mouse
MOWSS/maʊs/
A small rodent with a pointed nose and a long thin tail.
The small mouse has a pointed snout and long, slender tail.
Etymology
Old English mus already named the rodent and could also mean an arm muscle. That second use reflects an old comparison between a moving muscle and a little mouse.
In context
mainly in search of insects, with the occasional frog or rodent...like this one. Fangs almost an inch long pump neurotoxins into the dying mouse.
More examples
- We found two mice nesting behind the refrigerator.
- At meetings, he is a mouse who rarely speaks.
- The cat mouses in the barn every evening.
Forms
mouse · mice · mouses · moused · mousing
mouser noun — An animal that hunts and catches mice.
Similar words
- rodent
- A broader category that includes mice, rats, squirrels, and beavers.
- rat
- Usually names a larger rodent with a thicker tail.