Polecat

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Polecat \Pole"cat`\, n. [Probably fr. F. poule hen, and
     originally, a poultry cat, because it feeds on poultry. See
     {Poultry}.] (Zool.)
        (a) A small European carnivore of the Weasel family
            ({Putorius f[oe]tidus}). Its scent glands secrete a
            substance of an exceedingly disagreeable odor. Called


            also {fitchet}, {foulmart}, and {European ferret}.
        (b) The zorilla. The name is also applied to other allied
            species.
            [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  polecat
       n 1: American musteline mammal typically ejecting an intensely
            malodorous fluid when startled; in some classifications
            put in a separate subfamily Mephitinae [syn: {skunk}, {wood
            pussy}]
       2: dark brown mustelid of woodlands of Eurasia that gives off
          an unpleasant odor when threatened [syn: {fitch}, {foulmart},
           {foumart}, {Mustela putorius}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  53 Moby Thesaurus words for "polecat":
     Cape polecat, animal, ape, bar, bear, beast, cavy, chimp,
     chimpanzee, coon, cur, dog, ferret, foumart, glutton, groundhog,
     guinea pig, hedgehog, hound, hyena, insect, mongrel, monk, monkey,
     mousehound, opossum, pig, porcupine, possum, prairie dog,
     quill pig, raccoon, reptile, rotten egg, serpent, skunk, snake,
     stink ball, stink bomb, stinkard, stinker, stinkpot, swine,
     varmint, vermin, viper, weasel, whelp, whistle-pig, wolverine,
     woodchuck, worm, zoril