woodchuck

noun

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wood·chuck | \ ˈwu̇d-ˌchək

Definition of woodchuck

: a grizzled thickset marmot (Marmota monax) chiefly of Alaska, Canada, and the northeastern U.S.

— called also groundhog

Examples of woodchuck in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web And if the woodchuck was not your rodent of choice, there were rats. — David E. Petzal, Field & Stream, "What Would You Do with the Last Box of .22 Ammunition?," 27 Nov. 2020 Chuckles X, a female woodchuck that conveyed forecasts to Manchester Mayor Jay Moran this year and in 2019, was cremated, Lutz Children’s Museum interim Director Kate Morrissey said Wednesday. — Jesse Leavenworth, courant.com, "Chuckles X, Connecticut’s official state groundhog, has died - search for Chuckles XI underway," 21 Oct. 2020 There's still plenty of room among the stands of milkweed, yellow coneflower and stiff goldenrod for the monarch butterflies, purple martins, ruby-throated hummingbirds, honey bees and the rogue woodchuck. — Barry Adams, Star Tribune, "Reading while you walk the prairie at Madison center," 7 Sep. 2020 The most obvious is to drive it daily, because unlike our mouse or Sirgany's woodchuck, most rodents will jump out of the engine and not return once the car is regularly in motion. — Jamie L. Lareau, Detroit Free Press, "Unusual rodent engine problem has suddenly become 'super common'," 9 June 2020 Sirgany gently shut the hood and called wildlife experts to safely remove the woodchuck, also called a groundhog. — Jamie L. Lareau, Detroit Free Press, "Unusual rodent engine problem has suddenly become 'super common'," 9 June 2020 Your curator has seen a red fox in the back, a woodchuck out front, and the hatching of songbirds in a nest underneath our eaves. — Steve Winter, National Geographic, "Everyone can watch the birds," 4 June 2020 There aren’t a lot of loads in this chambering to choose from, but the unquestionable best for anything larger than a woodchuck is Buffalo Bore’s 130-grain deep-penetrating hard-cast load that generates 375 foot-pounds of muzzle energy. — Richard Mann, Field & Stream, "The 10 Best Handgun Hunting Cartridges and Loads," 24 Feb. 2020 There were a lot of spots where no animals appeared, although the zoo houses almost 19,000 individuals (including centipedes, armadillos, catfish, giraffes, lions and woodchucks). — Jane Smiley, New York Times, "Jane Smiley on What St. Louis Tells Us About America," 14 Oct. 2019

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