Main Entry:

meer·kat

Pronunciation:

\ˈmir-ˌkat\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Afrikaans, from Dutch, a kind of monkey, from Middle Dutch meercatte monkey, from meer sea + catte cat

Date:

1801

: any of several African mongooses ; especially : a burrowing highly social primarily insectivorous mammal (Suricata suricatta) of southern Africa that is chiefly grayish with faint black markings and lives in usually large colonies

[meerkat illustration]