opossum

noun

opos·​sum ə-ˈpä-səm  ˈpä-səm 

plural opossums also opossum

1

: any of a family (Didelphidae) of small- to medium-sized American marsupials that usually have a pointed snout and nearly hairless scaly prehensile tail, are typically active at night, and are sometimes hunted for their fur or meat

especially : a common omnivorous largely nocturnal mammal (Didelphis virginiana) of North and Central America that is a skilled climber, that typically has a white face and grayish body and in the female a well-developed fur-lined pouch, and that when threatened may feign death by curling up the body and remaining motionless and unresponsive

2

: possum sense 2

Illustration of opossum

• opossum 1

Examples of opossum in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The list is long, but the most common local wild species includes bobcats, coyotes, raccoons, deer, mountain lions, skunks, foxes, cottontail rabbits and opossums. —Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 July 2025

Likely, species that already thrive in the subway—rats, cockroaches, pigeons, opossums—would be the first ones to take advantage of the human-free passages. —Sarah Durn, Popular Science, 5 June 2025

Eating the entire cake likely saved the opossum’s life, Nebraska Wildlife Rehab said. —Dawn Sawyer, CNN, 15 Feb. 2025

While deer are the most common animal stuck by vehicles, raccoons, skunks, opossums, squirrels and countless birds also fall victim. —Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 30 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

earlier apossoun, opassom, borrowed from a Virginia Algonquian word of uncertain form, going back to Algonquian *wa·p- "white" + *-aʔθemw- "dog, small animal"

First Known Use

1610, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for opossum

• lysosome
• awesome
• blossom
• possum
• odontoglossum

Kids Definition

opossum

noun

opos·​sum (ə-)ˈpäs-əm 

plural opossums also opossum

: a common marsupial mammal mostly of the eastern U.S. that usually is active at night, has a tail that can wrap around and grasp objects (as tree branches), and is an expert climber

Etymology

from apossoun, opassom, a word in an Algonquian language of Virginia meaning, literally, "white dog"