: any of various usually small energetic dogs originally used by hunters to dig for small game and engage the quarry underground or drive it out
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The dogs — a brown pit bull terrier, a black Shepherd mix and a white Shepherd/Shiba Inu mix — have been in the custody of Fort Worth Animal Control since June 17, the day after Ronald Anderson was found dead inside his home.—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Aug. 2025 However, the plan backfired when Marvel, a terrier mix, took his excitement for the walk to the next level.—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 July 2025 Ozu was one of 30 terrier mixes who landed at the municipal shelter in Riverside County, California, in the spring of 2022.—Jen Reeder, Forbes.com, 25 July 2025 Eventually, the time came for the pup — believed to be a terrier mix — to go up for adoption.—Simone Jasper
july 23, Miami Herald, 23 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for terrier
Word History
Etymology
Middle English terryer, terrer, from Anglo-French (chen) terrer, literally, earth dog, from terre earth, from Latin terra
: any of various usually small energetic dogs originally used by hunters to drive game animals from their holes
Etymology
Middle English terryer "a small dog used for hunting burrowing animals," from early French (chen) terrer, literally "earth dog," from terre "earth," derived from Latin terra (same meaning)
Word Origin
Today most terriers are kept as pets. However, there was a time when the dogs were widely used for hunting. Terriers are usually small dogs with short legs, and they were used to dig game animals such as foxes, badgers, and weasels out of their holes. The dogs were also trained to go into a hole after a game animal and drive it out. The French name for these dogs was chen terrer, meaning "earth dog." English borrowed only the word terrier, which can be traced back to Latin terra, meaning "earth."
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