BANDICOOT

bandicoot

(noun) any of various agile ratlike terrestrial marsupials of Australia and adjacent islands; insectivorous and herbivorous

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

bandicoot (plural bandicoots)

A small Australian marsupial with a distinctive long snout, of the family Peramelidae.

Any of several rat-like rodents of the genera Bandicota and Nesokia of southeast Asia.

Verb

bandicoot (third-person singular simple present bandicoots, present participle bandicooting, simple past and past participle bandicooted)

(AU, informal) To steal growing vegetables from a garden.

Source: Wiktionary

Ban"di*coot, n. Etym: [A corruption of the native name.] (Zoöl.) (a) A species of very large rat (Mus giganteus), found in India and Ceylon. It does much injury to rice fields and gardens. (b) A ratlike marsupial animal (genus Perameles) of several species, found in Australia and Tasmania.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition