WEASEL

weasel

(noun) small carnivorous mammal with short legs and elongated body and neck

weasel

(noun) a person who is regarded as treacherous or sneaky

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

weasel (plural weasels)

The least weasel, Mustela nivalis.

Any of the carnivorous mammals of the genus Mustela, having a slender body, a long tail and usually a light brown upper coat and light-coloured belly.

The taxonomic family Mustelidae is also called the weasel family.

A devious or sneaky person or animal.

A type of yarn winder used for counting the yardage of handspun yarn. It most commonly has a wooden peg or dowel that pops up from the gearing mechanism after a certain number of yards have been wound onto the winder.

Hypernyms

• carnivorous mammal

Hyponyms

• least weasel

• mountain weasel

• short-tailed weasel

• Siberian weasel

Verb

weasel (third-person singular simple present weasels, present participle weaselling or weaseling, simple past and past participle weaselled or weaseled)

(transitive) To achieve by clever or devious means.

(transitive or reflexive) To gain something for oneself by clever or devious means.

(intransitive) To engage in clever or devious behavior.

Usage notes

• Weaseling and weaseled are more common in the US. Weaselling and weaselled are more common in the UK.

Anagrams

• weales

Source: Wiktionary

Wea"sel, n. Etym: [OE. wesele, AS. wesle; akin to D. wezel, G. wiesel, OHG. wisala, Icel. hreyivisla, Dan. väsel, Sw. vessla; of uncertain origin; cf. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Definition: Any one of various species of small carnivores belonging to the genus Putorius, as the ermine and ferret. They have a slender, elongated body, and are noted for the quickness of their movements and for their bloodthirsty habit in destroying poultry, rats, etc. The ermine and some other species are brown in summer, and turn white in winter; others are brown at all seasons. Malacca weasel, the rasse.

– Weasel coot, a female or young male of the smew; -- so called from the resemblance of the head to that of a weasel. Called also weasel duck.

– Weasel lemur, a short-tailed lemur (Lepilemur mustelinus). It is reddish brown above, grayish brown below, with the throat white.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition