Main Entry: ¹go·pher

Pronunciation: \ˈgō-fər\

Function: noun

Etymology: origin unknown

Date: 1791

1 : a burrowing land tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) of the southern United States; broadly : any of several related land tortoises —called also gopher tortoise
2 a : any of a family (Geomyidae) of burrowing rodents of western North America, Central America, and the southern United States that are the size of a large rat and have large cheek pouches opening beside the mouth —called also pocket gopher b : any of several small ground squirrels (genus Spermophilus) of the prairie region of North America
3 : gopher ball

[gopher illustration]