rodent

noun ro·dent \ ˈrō-dᵊnt \

|Updated on: 14 Aug 2018

Definition of rodent

1 : any of an order (Rodentia) of relatively small gnawing mammals (such as a mouse, squirrel, or beaver) that have in both jaws a single pair of incisors with a chisel-shaped edge

2 : a small mammal (such as a rabbit or a shrew) other than a true rodent

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rodent

adjective

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Recent Examples of rodent from the Web

Don and the other tapirs share space with two South American natives; capybaras, huge rodents, and guanacos, wild relatives of llamas.

— bradley j. fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "For the Fourth, bring out the (San Diego Zoo) babies!," 3 July 2018
This afternoon the Bakery discovered a rodent in its stall and the stall was immediately closed.

— baltimoresun.com, "Video shows rat in bakery case at Lexington Market; stall closed," 13 July 2018
Its biggest claims to fame are Jimmy the Groundhog, a renowned rodent that predicts how long winter will last on Groundhog Day, and midget car races.

— Washington Post, "Firefighter killed in gas explosion, fire near Madison," 11 July 2018
Seven died from direct impacts, while the other victim, a 52-year-old Florida man, died in a house fire after his sister threw a lit firecracker at a rodent, setting the home’s insulation ablaze, the agency said.

— tom avril, Philly.com, "Fourth of July fireworks: Be wary. Even sparklers can kill," 30 June 2018
After the restaurant closed, a video showing a cook smash the head of a rodent on the kitchen floor surfaced.

— alexandra deabler, Fox News, "Cook recorded smashing a rat’s head with hatchet on kitchen floor, restaurant shut down," 24 June 2018
When the zoo's most recent groundhog, Wynter, died in 2017, polar bear Snow Lilly performed the duties normally handled by a prognosticating rodent this past February.

— meg jones, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Awwww! Milwaukee zoo announces arrival of adorable baby groundhog. And he loves broccoli.," 24 June 2018
Correction: June 19, 2018 An earlier version of this article erroneously described the javelina as a rodent.

— miriam jordan, New York Times, "Swift Frontier Justice for Migrants Brought to Federal Courts," 19 June 2018
Unfortunately, President Barack Obama happened to be there when a rodent was found roaming the royal grounds.

— eileen reslen, Town & Country, "The One Thing Barack Obama Didn't Tell Michelle About His Visit with Queen Elizabeth," 7 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'rodent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of rodent

borrowed from the base of New Latin Rodentia, order name, from neuter plural of Latin rōdent-, rōdens, present participle of rōdere "to gnaw, nibble, eat away," perhaps going back to Indo-European *Hr̥h₃d-, *Hreh₃d-, whence also Hittite ardu- "saw (off)," Sanskrit rádati "(s/he) bites, gnaws, cuts, opens"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1830

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year