meerkat

noun

meer·​kat ˈmir-ˌkat 

: 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

Illustration of meerkat

Examples of meerkat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Dwarf mongooses deposit more territorial scent markings when a rival is detected nearby, meanwhile meerkats tend to scent mark near burrows that intruders have scoped out. — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 16 July 2026

One of his stops was the Kalahari Desert, Northern Cape, South Africa, to specifically document the complex lives of meerkats. — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 8 May 2026

The clip shows the red‑shaded, shorthaired dachshund secured in his harness and dog bed, balanced upright like a meerkat in the back seat of the vehicle. — Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026

Humans, on average, are more monogamous than meerkats but less monogamous than beavers. — Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

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

First Known Use

1801, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

meerkat

noun

meer·​kat ˈmir-ˌkat 

: a burrowing mammal of southern Africa that feeds chiefly on insects, is grayish with faint black markings, and lives in usually large colonies