noun
polecat
An informal North American name for a skunk.
The farmer called the skunk a polecat.
Etymology
Polecat originally named a different small, strong-smelling mammal. North American speakers transferred the name to the skunk because of the comparable smell.
More examples
- A striped polecat wandered near the barn.
- The local account warned of a polecat’s strong spray.
- They smelled the polecat before they saw its black-and-white tail.
Forms
polecat · polecats
Similar words
- skunk
- Skunk is the standard name; polecat is a regional informal name for it in North America.