rodentadj.n.

Brit.

/ˈrəʊdnt/, U.S.

/ˈroʊdnt/

Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymons: Latin rōdent-, rōdēns.

Etymology: < classical Latin rōdent-, rōdēns, present participle of rōdere to gnaw, eat away, erode, perhaps < the same Indo-European base as Sanskrit rad- to dig, gnaw. With senses A. 2 and B. 1 compare scientific Latin Rodentia (see Rodentia n.). In sense B. 2 after the corresponding figurative use of rat n.¹ (compare rat n.¹ 4a).

A. adj.

†a. Acrid; corrosive. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > taste and flavour > sourness or acidity > [adjective] > bitter

baskc1175

to do amerec1400

fell?c1425

gallyc1530

rhubarba1586

bitterish1605

acrimonious1617

acrid1633

rodent1633

absinthiana1635

gallish1648

acroamare1657

absinthiala1857

absinthine1862

1633 Gutta Podagrica 7 They [sc. the humors of the body] offend in quality, being too hot, or too cold, or too sharp, and rodent.

b. Chiefly poetic. Of the sea, air, etc.: having the property of gradually wearing something away; erosive. Now rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > structure of the earth > formation of features > erosion or weathering > [adjective] > water or wave erosion

undermining1617

retrograding1629

rodent1874

1874 Lippincott's Monthly Mag. Nov. 594/2 Out came the lovely carving of the rodent waves.

?1913 J. M. Harper Ann. War 96 To catch a glimpse of the wear-and-tear of the rodent whirlpool.

a1959 D. Devlin in Dublin Univ. Rev. (1964) Summer 94 On my last legs above the rodent sea standing.

1980 B. Mason Solo 4 The houses of Te Parenga face the sea,..painted red and brown to thwart the rodent air.

2. Of, relating to, or designating gnawing mammals of (or formerly of) the order Rodentia. Also (of incisor teeth): adapted for gnawing.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [adjective] > of or relating to rodents

rodent1830

rodential1832

rodentian1846

sciuroid1850

1830 Zool. Jrnl. No. XVII. 267 In the Capybara..and in some other animals of the Rodent order, the authour [sic] has observed a singular developement of the velum pendulum palati.

1833 Penny Cycl. I. 184/2 Of the Rodent mammals (Rodentia) of Africa..we have no very extensive knowledge.

1840 E. Blyth et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom 108 In this we may discern a slight approach to the rodent character of Cheiromys.

1877 W. Matthews Ethnogr. Hidatsa 50 The rodent teeth of the beaver are regarded as potent charms.

1883 Encycl. Brit. XV. 419/2 Rodent Moles, with very small or rudimentary eyes and ear-conchs.

1911 Encycl. Brit. XXI. 575/2 Pica, the name of the European representative of a group of diminutive rodent mammals.

1957 J. Z. Young Life of Mammals 228 The characteristic ‘rodent’ incisors [of rabbits] are arranged to give continually sharp edges.

1983 D. J. Weatherall et al. Oxf. Textbk. Med. I. v. 116/1 Lassa produces a persistent tolerated infection in its rodent reservoir host with no ill effects.

2006 Washington Post 10 Mar. a3/1 Kha-nyou..is a modern member of an ancient rodent family last seen as an 11 million-year-old fossil.

B. n.

1. Any mammal of (or formerly of) the order Rodentia: see Rodentia n.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun]

Rodentia1802

rodent1830

sciuromorph1877

sciuroid1937

1830 E. T. Bennett Gardens & Menagerie Zool. Soc. I. 287 As a Rodent, however, the latter [sc. the paca] was usually arranged by naturalists of the last two centuries either with the Rats or with the Hares.

1859 C. Darwin Origin of Species v. 137 The eyes of moles and of some burrowing rodents are rudimentary in size.

1880 S. Haughton Six Lect. Physical Geogr. vi. 287 The peculiar families of South American Rodents—cavies, spiny-rats, and chinchillas.

1902 Science 24 Jan. 149/1 Capromys..is a peculiar genus, having its nearest relative in the Octodont rodents of South America.

a1933 J. A. Thomson Biol. for Everyman (1934) I. xx. 601 It [sc. the little owl] is beneficial in devouring injurious insects and small rodents.

1974 W. Condry Woodlands vi. 77 The lemming, a vole-like rodent, increases to peak numbers every seven years.

1990 J. Fane Hope Cottage 32 His pop-eyes manage to be beady and again remind me of a rodent.

2008 Helsinki Times 13 Nov. 20/5 In Brazil's tropical wetland of Pantanal Jeff meets the world's largest living rodents, Capybaras.

2. derogatory. A despicable, contemptible, or worthless person. Cf. rat n.¹ 4a.In quot. 1889: a disloyal person, a deserter; = rat n.¹ 4d.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > condition of being held in contempt > [noun] > state or quality of being contemptible > contemptible person

wormc825

wretchOE

thingOE

hinderlingc1175

harlot?c1225

mixa1300

villain1303

whelpc1330

wonnera1340

bismera1400

vilec1400

beasta1425

creaturec1450

dog bolt1465

fouling?a1475

drivel1478

shit1508

marmoset1523

mammeta1529

pilgarlica1529

pode1528

slave1537

slim1548

skit-brains?1553

grasshopper1556

scavenger1563

old boss1566

rag1566

shrub1566

ketterela1572

shake-rag1571

skybala1572

mumpsimus1573

smatchetc1582

squib1586

scabship1589

vassal1589

baboon1592

Gibraltar1593

polecat1593

mushroom1594

nodc1595

cittern-head1598

nit1598

stockfish1598

cum-twang1599

dish-wash1599

pettitoe1599

mustard-token1600

viliaco1600

cargo1602

stump1602

snotty-nose1604

sprat1605

wormling1605

brock1607

dogfly?1611

shag-rag1611

shack-rag1612

thrum1612

rabbita1616

fitchock1616

unworthy1616

baseling1618

shag1620

glow-worm1624

snip1633

the son of a worm1633

grousea1637

shab1637

wormship1648

muckworm1649

whiffler1659

prig1679

rotten egg1686

prigster1688

begged fool1693

hang-dog1693

bugger1694

reptile1697

squinny1716

snool1718

ramscallion1734

footer1748

jackass1756

hallion1789

skite1790

rattlesnake1791

snot1809

mudworm1814

skunk1816

stirrah1816

spalpeen1817

nyaff1825

skin1825

weed1825

tiger1827

beggar1834

despicability1837

squirt1844

prawn1845

shake1846

white mouse1846

scurf1851

sweep1853

cockroach1856

bummer1857

medlar1859

cunt1860

shuck1862

missing link1863

schweinhund1871

creepa1876

bum1882

trashbag1886

tinhorn1887

snot-rag1888

rodent1889

whelpling1889

pie eatera1891

mess1891

schmuck1892

fucker1893

cheapskate1894

cocksucker1894

gutter-bird1896

perisher1896

skate1896

schmendrick1897

nyamps1900

ullage1901

fink1903

onion1904

punk1904

shitepoke1905

tinhorn sport1906

streeler1907

zob1911

stink1916

motherfucker1918

Oscar1918

shitass1918

shit-face1923

tripe-hound1923

gimp1924

garbage can1925

twerp1925

jughead1926

mong1926

fuck?1927

arsehole1928

dirty dog1928

gazook1928

muzzler1928

roach1929

shite1929

mook1930

lug1931

slug1931

woodchuck1931

crud1932

dip1932

bohunkus1933

lint-head1933

Nimrod1933

warb1933

fuck-piga1935

owl-hoot1934

pissant1935

poot1935

shmegegge1937

motheree1938

motorcycle1938

squiff1939

pendejo1940

snotnose1941

jerkface1942

slag1943

yuck1943

fuckface?1945

fuckhead?1945

shit-head1945

shite-hawk1948

schlub1950

asswipe1953

mother1955

weenie1956

hard-on1958

rass hole1959

schmucko1959

bitch ass1961

effer1961

lamer1961

arsewipe1962

asshole1962

butthole1962

cock1962

dipshit1963

motherfuck1964

dork1965

bumhole1967

mofo1967

tosspot1967

crudball1968

dipstick1968

douche1968

frickface1968

schlong1968

fuckwit1969

rassclaat1969

ass1970

wank1970

fecker1971

wanker1971

butt-fucker1972

slimeball1972

bloodclaat1973

fuckwad1974

mutha1974

suck1974

cocksuck1977

tosser1977

plank1981

sleazebag1981

spastic1981

dweeb1982

bumboclaat1983

dickwad1983

scuzzbag1983

sleazeball1983

butt-face1984

dickweed1984

saddie1985

butt plug1986

jerkweed1988

dick-sucker1989

microcephalic1989

wankstain1990

sadster1992

buttmunch1993

fanny1995

jackhole1996

fassyhole1997

fannybaws2000

fassy2002

1889 R. Churchill Speeches I. 235 Lord Derby belongs to a tribe of political rodents.

1925 W. Deeping Sorrell & Son xxx. 302 A rodent, a nasty, acute little man of the Nosey Parker genus.

1977 P. Zindel Ladies at Alamo 56 You are not a lady! You are a rodent.

2001 A. Bissett Boyracers 131 ‘Where d'ye go tae, ya wee rodent ye?’ Brian asks, patting my back!

Compounds

C1. Compounds of the adjective (cf. sense A. 1).

rodent ulcer n. [after French ulcère rongeant (1851 or earlier)] Medicine = basal cell carcinoma n. at basal cell n. Compounds.In quot. 1904 figurative.

ΚΠ

1853 J. Paget Lect. Surg. Pathol. II. 452 The Rodent Ulcer is the disease which has been described under various names: such as cancerous ulcer of the face, cancroid ulcer [etc.].

1904 F. Rolfe Hadrian VII 29 As it is, I am of course a thorn, or a pest, or a fire-brand, or a rodent and purulent ulcer—vous en faites votre choix.

1949 H. Bailey Demonstr. Physical Signs Clin. Surg. (ed. 11) v. 49 (caption) A rodent ulcer usually occurs above an imaginary line joining the angle of the mouth and the lobule.

2002 L. Gold Good Hosp. Guide 129 The commonest cancer in the UK is non-melanoma skin cancer (rodent ulcers and squamous cell carcinoma).

rodent cancer n. Medicine (now rare) = basal cell carcinoma n. at basal cell n. Compounds.

ΚΠ

1865 C. H. Moore Antecedents Cancer 2 The Rodent Cancer, and some of the mammary, may yield up to the absorbents no more of their substance than a fatty tumour.

1893 St. Bartholomew's Hosp. Rep. 29 191 Rodent cancer most commonly occurs on the face.

1971 Amer. Jrnl. Surg. 122 771/1 He returned abruptly two years later with a spectacular perforation of the right auricle due to the ‘rodent cancer’.

C2. Compounds of the noun.

(a) attributive. Chiefly British. In the titles of people employed to catch or destroy rats and other rodents infesting buildings (often considered somewhat euphemistic; cf. rat-catcher n. 1a).

rodent controller n.

ΚΠ

1930 Los Angeles Times 10 Apr. i. 9/4 (heading) Rodent controller named.

1970 Daily Tel. 14 May 2/8 A senior rodent controller..was yesterday presented with the British Empire Medal for his 18 years' work destroying rats.

2000 Observer 31 Dec. ‘These days we can't just hit rats over the head with a shovel. They have to die with dignity.’ Colin Chapman, Rentokil's chief rodent controller for London, on killing rats.

rodent officer n.

ΚΠ

1944 Manch. Guardian 15 Jan. 2/3 Applications..in sealed envelopes endorsed ‘Rodent Officer’, should be delivered to the undersigned not later than Tuesday, 25th January, 1944.

2007 Oxf. Times (Nexis) 3 Oct. I called out the rodent officer from the council, and..he found a rat jammed up under a gutter in the back extension.

rodent operative n.

ΚΠ

1944 Manch. Guardian 2 Feb. 4/3 Any self-respecting rat-catcher will want more money on his promotion to ‘rodent operative’.

2001 Independent 4 Dec. Your ground troops are currently trying to smoke him out of his underground hidey-hole, like rodent operatives gassing rats.

rodent operator n.

ΚΠ

1945 Washington Post 8 Dec. 5/3 The woman who appeared in court here told the magistrate she was a ‘rodent operator’.

1998 J. S. Rajab Kedgeree & Rhubarb Crumble viii. 118 In these days of rodent operators, sanitary engineers, and refuse disposal operators, she would have become hysterical.

(b) Instrumental and objective.

rodent-carried adj.

ΚΠ

1925 Bot. Gaz. 80 186 Trees appear which spring from large rodent-carried fruits.

1996 Independent 13 Feb. 10/7 Poverty and of course human migration has contributed to the spread of disease and rodent-carried viruses.

rodent-infested adj.

ΚΠ

1881 North Amer. (Philadelphia) 24 June 1/6 (heading) A rodent-infested rookery.

1940 Sci. News Let. 37 79/1 He bought the half-section of over-grazed, weed-grown, rodent-infested land.

2008 Boston Globe (Electronic ed.) 3 Oct. Helping clients..living in rodent-infested homes.

rodent-proof adj.

ΚΠ

1899 Mass. Ploughman 26 Aug. 3/2 We shall make the underground edge rodent proof by means of stones, bricks or boards.

1937 Amer. Midl. Naturalist 18 419 Rodent-proof grain storage containers..save time and energy after winter arrives.

2007 Horse & Rider Oct. 103/2 An old chest freezer makes a great rodent-proof feed bin.

rodent run n. Ornithology (also rodent-run display) a distraction display performed by some ground-nesting birds when disturbed by a predator, in which they run from the nest in a manner resembling a running rodent.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > birds > actions or bird defined by > [noun] > a run when disturbed

rodent run1950

1950 Ibis 92 28 We observed that a husky dog would immediately chase the Purple Sandpiper that made a ‘rodent-run’ and would be completely fooled.

1985 B. Campbell & E. Lack Dict. Birds 144/2 In addition to a crouching run away from the predator, distraction–lure displays comprise..the small-mammal type (‘rodent-run’, ‘rat-trick’) in which the resemblance to a scurrying beast may be most realistic.

2001 Condor 103 414/2 Dust-bathing and allopreening were other frequent group activities [in striated grasswrens]. I also observed the rodent run display..and a threat display.

Derivatives

ˈrodent-like adj.

ΚΠ

1838 London & Edinb. Philos. Mag. 12 594 That worn surface..is the consequence of a continued grinding rodent-like action.

1910 Times 2 July 6/5 His reconstruction was more true to nature than the somewhat rodent-like creature represented in ‘From Nebula to Man’.

2002 W. Self Dorian (2003) xviii. 254 The Ferret's whispered revelations were experienced as little more than a rodent-like squeaking.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	rodent
释义	rodentadj.n. Brit. /ˈrəʊdnt/, U.S. /ˈroʊdnt/ Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymons: Latin rōdent-, rōdēns. Etymology: < classical Latin rōdent-, rōdēns, present participle of rōdere to gnaw, eat away, erode, perhaps < the same Indo-European base as Sanskrit rad- to dig, gnaw. With senses A. 2 and B. 1 compare scientific Latin Rodentia (see Rodentia n.). In sense B. 2 after the corresponding figurative use of rat n.¹ (compare rat n.¹ 4a). A. adj. 1. †a. Acrid; corrosive. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > taste and flavour > sourness or acidity > [adjective] > bitter baskc1175 to do amerec1400 fell?c1425 gallyc1530 rhubarba1586 bitterish1605 acrimonious1617 acrid1633 rodent1633 absinthiana1635 gallish1648 acroamare1657 absinthiala1857 absinthine1862 1633 Gutta Podagrica 7 They [sc. the humors of the body] offend in quality, being too hot, or too cold, or too sharp, and rodent. b. Chiefly poetic. Of the sea, air, etc.: having the property of gradually wearing something away; erosive. Now rare. ΘΚΠ the world > the earth > structure of the earth > formation of features > erosion or weathering > [adjective] > water or wave erosion undermining1617 retrograding1629 rodent1874 1874 Lippincott's Monthly Mag. Nov. 594/2 Out came the lovely carving of the rodent waves. ?1913 J. M. Harper Ann. War 96 To catch a glimpse of the wear-and-tear of the rodent whirlpool. a1959 D. Devlin in Dublin Univ. Rev. (1964) Summer 94 On my last legs above the rodent sea standing. 1980 B. Mason Solo 4 The houses of Te Parenga face the sea,..painted red and brown to thwart the rodent air. 2. Of, relating to, or designating gnawing mammals of (or formerly of) the order Rodentia. Also (of incisor teeth): adapted for gnawing. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [adjective] > of or relating to rodents rodent1830 rodential1832 rodentian1846 sciuroid1850 1830 Zool. Jrnl. No. XVII. 267 In the Capybara..and in some other animals of the Rodent order, the authour [sic] has observed a singular developement of the velum pendulum palati. 1833 Penny Cycl. I. 184/2 Of the Rodent mammals (Rodentia) of Africa..we have no very extensive knowledge. 1840 E. Blyth et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom 108 In this we may discern a slight approach to the rodent character of Cheiromys. 1877 W. Matthews Ethnogr. Hidatsa 50 The rodent teeth of the beaver are regarded as potent charms. 1883 Encycl. Brit. XV. 419/2 Rodent Moles, with very small or rudimentary eyes and ear-conchs. 1911 Encycl. Brit. XXI. 575/2 Pica, the name of the European representative of a group of diminutive rodent mammals. 1957 J. Z. Young Life of Mammals 228 The characteristic ‘rodent’ incisors [of rabbits] are arranged to give continually sharp edges. 1983 D. J. Weatherall et al. Oxf. Textbk. Med. I. v. 116/1 Lassa produces a persistent tolerated infection in its rodent reservoir host with no ill effects. 2006 Washington Post 10 Mar. a3/1 Kha-nyou..is a modern member of an ancient rodent family last seen as an 11 million-year-old fossil. B. n. 1. Any mammal of (or formerly of) the order Rodentia: see Rodentia n. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] Rodentia1802 rodent1830 sciuromorph1877 sciuroid1937 1830 E. T. Bennett Gardens & Menagerie Zool. Soc. I. 287 As a Rodent, however, the latter [sc. the paca] was usually arranged by naturalists of the last two centuries either with the Rats or with the Hares. 1859 C. Darwin Origin of Species v. 137 The eyes of moles and of some burrowing rodents are rudimentary in size. 1880 S. Haughton Six Lect. Physical Geogr. vi. 287 The peculiar families of South American Rodents—cavies, spiny-rats, and chinchillas. 1902 Science 24 Jan. 149/1 Capromys..is a peculiar genus, having its nearest relative in the Octodont rodents of South America. a1933 J. A. Thomson Biol. for Everyman (1934) I. xx. 601 It [sc. the little owl] is beneficial in devouring injurious insects and small rodents. 1974 W. Condry Woodlands vi. 77 The lemming, a vole-like rodent, increases to peak numbers every seven years. 1990 J. Fane Hope Cottage 32 His pop-eyes manage to be beady and again remind me of a rodent. 2008 Helsinki Times 13 Nov. 20/5 In Brazil's tropical wetland of Pantanal Jeff meets the world's largest living rodents, Capybaras. 2. derogatory. A despicable, contemptible, or worthless person. Cf. rat n.¹ 4a.In quot. 1889: a disloyal person, a deserter; = rat n.¹ 4d. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > condition of being held in contempt > [noun] > state or quality of being contemptible > contemptible person wormc825 wretchOE thingOE hinderlingc1175 harlot?c1225 mixa1300 villain1303 whelpc1330 wonnera1340 bismera1400 vilec1400 beasta1425 creaturec1450 dog bolt1465 fouling?a1475 drivel1478 shit1508 marmoset1523 mammeta1529 pilgarlica1529 pode1528 slave1537 slim1548 skit-brains?1553 grasshopper1556 scavenger1563 old boss1566 rag1566 shrub1566 ketterela1572 shake-rag1571 skybala1572 mumpsimus1573 smatchetc1582 squib1586 scabship1589 vassal1589 baboon1592 Gibraltar1593 polecat1593 mushroom1594 nodc1595 cittern-head1598 nit1598 stockfish1598 cum-twang1599 dish-wash1599 pettitoe1599 mustard-token1600 viliaco1600 cargo1602 stump1602 snotty-nose1604 sprat1605 wormling1605 brock1607 dogfly?1611 shag-rag1611 shack-rag1612 thrum1612 rabbita1616 fitchock1616 unworthy1616 baseling1618 shag1620 glow-worm1624 snip1633 the son of a worm1633 grousea1637 shab1637 wormship1648 muckworm1649 whiffler1659 prig1679 rotten egg1686 prigster1688 begged fool1693 hang-dog1693 bugger1694 reptile1697 squinny1716 snool1718 ramscallion1734 footer1748 jackass1756 hallion1789 skite1790 rattlesnake1791 snot1809 mudworm1814 skunk1816 stirrah1816 spalpeen1817 nyaff1825 skin1825 weed1825 tiger1827 beggar1834 despicability1837 squirt1844 prawn1845 shake1846 white mouse1846 scurf1851 sweep1853 cockroach1856 bummer1857 medlar1859 cunt1860 shuck1862 missing link1863 schweinhund1871 creepa1876 bum1882 trashbag1886 tinhorn1887 snot-rag1888 rodent1889 whelpling1889 pie eatera1891 mess1891 schmuck1892 fucker1893 cheapskate1894 cocksucker1894 gutter-bird1896 perisher1896 skate1896 schmendrick1897 nyamps1900 ullage1901 fink1903 onion1904 punk1904 shitepoke1905 tinhorn sport1906 streeler1907 zob1911 stink1916 motherfucker1918 Oscar1918 shitass1918 shit-face1923 tripe-hound1923 gimp1924 garbage can1925 twerp1925 jughead1926 mong1926 fuck?1927 arsehole1928 dirty dog1928 gazook1928 muzzler1928 roach1929 shite1929 mook1930 lug1931 slug1931 woodchuck1931 crud1932 dip1932 bohunkus1933 lint-head1933 Nimrod1933 warb1933 fuck-piga1935 owl-hoot1934 pissant1935 poot1935 shmegegge1937 motheree1938 motorcycle1938 squiff1939 pendejo1940 snotnose1941 jerkface1942 slag1943 yuck1943 fuckface?1945 fuckhead?1945 shit-head1945 shite-hawk1948 schlub1950 asswipe1953 mother1955 weenie1956 hard-on1958 rass hole1959 schmucko1959 bitch ass1961 effer1961 lamer1961 arsewipe1962 asshole1962 butthole1962 cock1962 dipshit1963 motherfuck1964 dork1965 bumhole1967 mofo1967 tosspot1967 crudball1968 dipstick1968 douche1968 frickface1968 schlong1968 fuckwit1969 rassclaat1969 ass1970 wank1970 fecker1971 wanker1971 butt-fucker1972 slimeball1972 bloodclaat1973 fuckwad1974 mutha1974 suck1974 cocksuck1977 tosser1977 plank1981 sleazebag1981 spastic1981 dweeb1982 bumboclaat1983 dickwad1983 scuzzbag1983 sleazeball1983 butt-face1984 dickweed1984 saddie1985 butt plug1986 jerkweed1988 dick-sucker1989 microcephalic1989 wankstain1990 sadster1992 buttmunch1993 fanny1995 jackhole1996 fassyhole1997 fannybaws2000 fassy2002 1889 R. Churchill Speeches I. 235 Lord Derby belongs to a tribe of political rodents. 1925 W. Deeping Sorrell & Son xxx. 302 A rodent, a nasty, acute little man of the Nosey Parker genus. 1977 P. Zindel Ladies at Alamo 56 You are not a lady! You are a rodent. 2001 A. Bissett Boyracers 131 ‘Where d'ye go tae, ya wee rodent ye?’ Brian asks, patting my back! Compounds C1. Compounds of the adjective (cf. sense A. 1). rodent ulcer n. [after French ulcère rongeant (1851 or earlier)] Medicine = basal cell carcinoma n. at basal cell n. Compounds.In quot. 1904 figurative. ΚΠ 1853 J. Paget Lect. Surg. Pathol. II. 452 The Rodent Ulcer is the disease which has been described under various names: such as cancerous ulcer of the face, cancroid ulcer [etc.]. 1904 F. Rolfe Hadrian VII 29 As it is, I am of course a thorn, or a pest, or a fire-brand, or a rodent and purulent ulcer—vous en faites votre choix. 1949 H. Bailey Demonstr. Physical Signs Clin. Surg. (ed. 11) v. 49 (caption) A rodent ulcer usually occurs above an imaginary line joining the angle of the mouth and the lobule. 2002 L. Gold Good Hosp. Guide 129 The commonest cancer in the UK is non-melanoma skin cancer (rodent ulcers and squamous cell carcinoma). rodent cancer n. Medicine (now rare) = basal cell carcinoma n. at basal cell n. Compounds. ΚΠ 1865 C. H. Moore Antecedents Cancer 2 The Rodent Cancer, and some of the mammary, may yield up to the absorbents no more of their substance than a fatty tumour. 1893 St. Bartholomew's Hosp. Rep. 29 191 Rodent cancer most commonly occurs on the face. 1971 Amer. Jrnl. Surg. 122 771/1 He returned abruptly two years later with a spectacular perforation of the right auricle due to the ‘rodent cancer’. C2. Compounds of the noun. a. (a) attributive. Chiefly British. In the titles of people employed to catch or destroy rats and other rodents infesting buildings (often considered somewhat euphemistic; cf. rat-catcher n. 1a). rodent controller n. ΚΠ 1930 Los Angeles Times 10 Apr. i. 9/4 (heading) Rodent controller named. 1970 Daily Tel. 14 May 2/8 A senior rodent controller..was yesterday presented with the British Empire Medal for his 18 years' work destroying rats. 2000 Observer 31 Dec. ‘These days we can't just hit rats over the head with a shovel. They have to die with dignity.’ Colin Chapman, Rentokil's chief rodent controller for London, on killing rats. rodent officer n. ΚΠ 1944 Manch. Guardian 15 Jan. 2/3 Applications..in sealed envelopes endorsed ‘Rodent Officer’, should be delivered to the undersigned not later than Tuesday, 25th January, 1944. 2007 Oxf. Times (Nexis) 3 Oct. I called out the rodent officer from the council, and..he found a rat jammed up under a gutter in the back extension. rodent operative n. ΚΠ 1944 Manch. Guardian 2 Feb. 4/3 Any self-respecting rat-catcher will want more money on his promotion to ‘rodent operative’. 2001 Independent 4 Dec. Your ground troops are currently trying to smoke him out of his underground hidey-hole, like rodent operatives gassing rats. rodent operator n. ΚΠ 1945 Washington Post 8 Dec. 5/3 The woman who appeared in court here told the magistrate she was a ‘rodent operator’. 1998 J. S. Rajab Kedgeree & Rhubarb Crumble viii. 118 In these days of rodent operators, sanitary engineers, and refuse disposal operators, she would have become hysterical. (b) Instrumental and objective. rodent-carried adj. ΚΠ 1925 Bot. Gaz. 80 186 Trees appear which spring from large rodent-carried fruits. 1996 Independent 13 Feb. 10/7 Poverty and of course human migration has contributed to the spread of disease and rodent-carried viruses. rodent-infested adj. ΚΠ 1881 North Amer. (Philadelphia) 24 June 1/6 (heading) A rodent-infested rookery. 1940 Sci. News Let. 37 79/1 He bought the half-section of over-grazed, weed-grown, rodent-infested land. 2008 Boston Globe (Electronic ed.) 3 Oct. Helping clients..living in rodent-infested homes. rodent-proof adj. ΚΠ 1899 Mass. Ploughman 26 Aug. 3/2 We shall make the underground edge rodent proof by means of stones, bricks or boards. 1937 Amer. Midl. Naturalist 18 419 Rodent-proof grain storage containers..save time and energy after winter arrives. 2007 Horse & Rider Oct. 103/2 An old chest freezer makes a great rodent-proof feed bin. b. rodent run n. Ornithology (also rodent-run display) a distraction display performed by some ground-nesting birds when disturbed by a predator, in which they run from the nest in a manner resembling a running rodent. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > birds > actions or bird defined by > [noun] > a run when disturbed rodent run1950 1950 Ibis 92 28 We observed that a husky dog would immediately chase the Purple Sandpiper that made a ‘rodent-run’ and would be completely fooled. 1985 B. Campbell & E. Lack Dict. Birds 144/2 In addition to a crouching run away from the predator, distraction–lure displays comprise..the small-mammal type (‘rodent-run’, ‘rat-trick’) in which the resemblance to a scurrying beast may be most realistic. 2001 Condor 103 414/2 Dust-bathing and allopreening were other frequent group activities [in striated grasswrens]. I also observed the rodent run display..and a threat display. Derivatives ˈrodent-like adj. ΚΠ 1838 London & Edinb. Philos. Mag. 12 594 That worn surface..is the consequence of a continued grinding rodent-like action. 1910 Times 2 July 6/5 His reconstruction was more true to nature than the somewhat rodent-like creature represented in ‘From Nebula to Man’. 2002 W. Self Dorian (2003) xviii. 254 The Ferret's whispered revelations were experienced as little more than a rodent-like squeaking. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < adj.n.1633
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