Illustration of beaver
- B beaver 1
plural beavers
1
or plural beaver
a
: either of two large semiaquatic herbivorous rodents comprising a family (Castoridae including Castor canadensis of North America and C. fiber of Eurasia), having webbed hind feet and a broad flat scaly tail, and constructing dams and partially submerged lodges
b
: the fur or pelt of the beaver
2
a
: a hat made of beaver fur or a fabric imitation
b
: silk hat
3
: a heavy fabric of felted wool or of cotton napped on both sides
4
vulgar
: the genitals of a female especially when covered with pubic hair
1
: a piece of armor protecting the lower part of the face
2
: a helmet visor
beavered; beavering; beavers
: to work energetically
beavering away at the problem
Synonyms
Examples of beaver in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Shane Mitchell, Saveur, 28 Mar. 2024
Should be another nice view of the waning beaver moon and Jupiter in the eastern sky this evening.
—Dan Stillman, Washington Post, 29 Nov. 2023
Share [Findings] Climate change was expected to drive American lobsters to seek deeper waters, beavers to colonize new parts of Canada, and wolf spiders in the high Arctic to produce a second annual brood.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 27 Mar. 2024
The roughly 1,000-year-old pictographs depict how various animals, including beavers, created the world.
—Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2024
The screenwriting duo combine the slapstick comedy of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplain with the zany antics of Road Runner and Bugs Bunny cartoons in a 19th-century cracked fable about a cider entrepreneur turned furrier trying to outsmart a pack of much brighter beavers and rabbits.
—Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 21 Feb. 2024
The Beaver Moon takes its name from early Native American tribes as well as American colonists, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac, when beavers begin sheltering in their lodges after gathering enough food to last the winter.
—John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Jan. 2024
The presence of tools and jewelry carved from beaver teeth and jaws, the researchers claim, is evidence that beavers were important to humans.
—Paige Madison, Discover Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
Most eye-catching is its goal of reintroducing beavers—hunted to extinction in the UK four centuries ago—to London.
—Matthew Ponsford, WIRED, 19 Mar. 2024
Noun
Other historical exceptions have included capybara in Venezuela, muskrat in Michigan, and beaver in Quebec.
—Shane Mitchell, Saveur, 28 Mar. 2024
Should be another nice view of the waning beaver moon and Jupiter in the eastern sky this evening.
—Dan Stillman, Washington Post, 29 Nov. 2023
Share [Findings] Climate change was expected to drive American lobsters to seek deeper waters, beavers to colonize new parts of Canada, and wolf spiders in the high Arctic to produce a second annual brood.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 27 Mar. 2024
The roughly 1,000-year-old pictographs depict how various animals, including beavers, created the world.
—Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2024
The screenwriting duo combine the slapstick comedy of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplain with the zany antics of Road Runner and Bugs Bunny cartoons in a 19th-century cracked fable about a cider entrepreneur turned furrier trying to outsmart a pack of much brighter beavers and rabbits.
—Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 21 Feb. 2024
The Beaver Moon takes its name from early Native American tribes as well as American colonists, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac, when beavers begin sheltering in their lodges after gathering enough food to last the winter.
—John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Jan. 2024
The presence of tools and jewelry carved from beaver teeth and jaws, the researchers claim, is evidence that beavers were important to humans.
—Paige Madison, Discover Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
Most eye-catching is its goal of reintroducing beavers—hunted to extinction in the UK four centuries ago—to London.
—Matthew Ponsford, WIRED, 19 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'beaver.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Beaver.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beaver. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
beaver
1 of 2 noun
bea·ver
ˈbē-vər 
plural beaver or beavers
1
: a large plant-eating rodent that has webbed hind feet and a broad flat tail and that builds dams and houses of mud and branches which are partly underwater
2
: the fur of a beaver
beaver
2 of 2 noun
: a piece of armor protecting the lower part of the face
Geographical Definition
Beaver
geographical name
Bea·ver
ˈbē-vər
1
river 280 miles (451 kilometers) long in northwestern Oklahoma forming the upper course of the North Canadian River
2
river 305 miles (491 kilometers) long Canada in Alberta and Saskatchewan flowing east into the Churchill River
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