Main Entry: ¹rab·bit

Pronunciation: \ˈra-bət\

Function: noun

Inflected Form(s): plural rabbit or rabbits

Usage: often attributive

Etymology: Middle English rabet, probably from Middle French dial. (Walloon) robett, from obsolete or dial. Dutch robbe, robbeken; probably akin to Middle Low German robbe seal, East Frisian rubben to scratch, rub — more at rub

Date: 14th century

1 : any of a family (Leporidae) of long-eared short-tailed lagomorph mammals with long hind legs: a : any of various lagomorphs that are born furless, blind, and helpless, that are sometimes gregarious, and that include especially the cottontails of the New World and a small Old World mammal (Oryctolagus cuniculus) that is the source of various domestic breeds b : hare
2 : the pelt of a rabbit
3 : welsh rabbit
4 a : a figure of a rabbit sped mechanically along the edge of a dog track as an object of pursuit b : a runner in a long-distance race who sets a fast pace for the field in the first part of the race

— rab·bity \-bə-tē\ adjective