squirreln.
/ˈskwɪrəl/, /ˈskwɪrl̩/, U.S. /ˈskwər(ə)l/ 1.
a. One or other of various species of slender, graceful, agile rodents (characterized by a long bushy tail, furry coat, and bright eyes), belonging to the genus Sciurus, or to the widely-distributed sub-family Sciurina including this; esp. the common species Sciurus vulgaris, native to Britain, Europe, and parts of Asia.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel)
aquernea800
squirrel?a1366
bun1587
con?1590
scorel1671
sciurine1841
sciurid1907
α.
β. 14.. Chaucer's Parl. Foules (Harl.) 196 Squerellis smale, and bestes of gentil kynde.1423 Kingis Quair clv The lytill squerell, full of besynesse.1555 R. Eden tr. G. F. de Oviedo y Valdés Summarie Gen. Hist. W. Indies in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 182 As it weare a grehounde shulde ouerturne a squerell.1598 J. Manwood Treat. Lawes Forrest v. f. 30v Any wild beast, that is taken in hunting: as a Squerrell.1630 F. Higginson New-Englands Plantation sig. B3v Also here are great store of squerrels, some greater, and some smaller and lesser.1860 ‘G. Eliot’ Mill on Floss II. iii. vi. 86 Bob Jakin..as you went arter the squerrils with.1876 F. K. Robinson Gloss. Words Whitby Swerill,..the squirrel.γ. c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 450/1 Scorel, or squerel, beest, esperiolus.?a1500 Nominale (Yale Beinecke 594) in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 759/29 Hic scurellus, a scurelle.?a1366 Romaunt Rose 1402 There myght menne does and roes y-se And of squyrels ful great plente, From bowe to bowe alwaye lepyng.
c1381 G. Chaucer Parl. Foules (Cambr.) 196 Squyrelis & bestes smale of gentil kynde.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (1839) xix. 206 Thei wolde lepen als lightly in to Trees..as it were Squyrelles.
1483 Cath. Angl. 357/2 A Squyrelle,..sirogrillus.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 275/1 Squyrrell a beest, escurevl, escuireau.
c1592 N. Breton C'tess Penbrooke's Love xcviii The lambes and rabbots sweetlie rune at base, Whilst highest trees the litle squiriles clime.
1624 J. Smith Gen. Hist. Virginia ii. 27 Their Squirrels some are neare as great as our smallest sort of wilde Rabbets, some blackish or blacke and white, but the most are gray.
1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant iii. 12 Its Muzle is round and of a Flesh~colour, and hath a Tail like a Squirrel.
1726 J. Swift Gulliver II. iv. i. 7 They climbed high Trees, as nimbly as a Squirrel.
1785 W. Cowper Task vi. 315 The squirrel, flippant, pert, and full of play.
1816 P. B. Shelley Alastor 8 The doves and squirrels would partake From his innocuous hand his bloodless food.
1855 W. S. Dallas in Orr's Circle Sci.: Org. Nature III. 467 In the United States of America,..Squirrels abound to an extraordinary extent, and often cause great loss to the farmer.
c1880 Cassell's Nat. Hist. III. 87 Squirrels appear to be strictly monogamous, pairing for life, and constantly inhabiting the same dwelling.
b. Without article, in collective sense; also = squirrel-skin, squirrel-fur.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel) > collectively
squirrel1436
squirrel1605
squirrel1834
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > skin or hide > skin with hair attached or fur > [noun] > of squirrel
strandlingc1299
vaira1300
miniverc1300
calaber1362
pured miniver1379
purray1429
pured?1435
squirrel1436
pople1493
pure1512
amice1548
squirrel1827
1436 Libel Eng. Policy in Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 186 Skynnes of otere, squerel,..Of shepe, lambe, and fox.
14.. in Sc. Acts Parl. (1844) I. 667 Of þe tymmyr of skurel [c1575 skarale], ij d.
14.. in Sc. Acts Parl. (1844) I. 667 Of ane hundreth gray gryse and skurel dycht and letheryt, viij d.
c. Applied to other animals or to persons, usually with contemptuous force.
ΘΚΠ
the world > people > person > [noun]
hadc900
lifesmaneOE
maneOE
world-maneOE
ghostOE
wyeOE
lifeOE
son of manOE
wightc1175
soulc1180
earthmanc1225
foodc1225
person?c1225
creaturec1300
bodyc1325
beera1382
poppetc1390
flippera1400
wat1399
corsec1400
mortal?a1425
deadly?c1450
hec1450
personagec1485
wretcha1500
human1509
mundane1509
member1525
worma1556
homo1561
piece of flesh1567
sconce1567
squirrel?1567
fellow creature1572
Adamite1581
bloat herringa1586
earthling1593
mother's child1594
stuff1598
a piece of flesh1600
wagtail1607
bosom1608
fragment1609
boots1623
tick1631
worthy1649
earthlies1651
snap1653
pippin1665
being1666
personal1678
personality1678
sooterkin1680
party1686
worldling1687
human being1694
water-wagtail1694
noddle1705
human subject1712
piece of work1713
somebody1724
terrestrial1726
anybody1733
individual1742
character1773
cuss1775
jig1781
thingy1787
bod1788
curse1790
his nabs1790
article1796
Earthite1814
critter1815
potato1815
personeityc1816
nibs1821
somebody1826
tellurian1828
case1832
tangata1840
prawn1845
nigger1848
nut1856
Snooks1860
mug1865
outfit1867
to deliver the goods1870
hairpin1879
baby1880
possum1894
hot tamale1895
babe1900
jobbie1902
virile1903
cup of tea1908
skin1914
pisser1918
number1919
job1927
apple1928
mush1936
face1944
jong1956
naked ape1965
oke1970
punter1975
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > dog > [noun] > with contemptuous force
squirrel?1567
?1567 Merie Tales Master Skelton sig. Bviiiv Skelton dyd harnesse the doughtye Squirell [a cobbler].
a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) iv. iv. 53 The other Squirrill was stolne from me... And then I offer'd her mine owne, who is a dog As big as ten of yours. View more context for this quotation
1865 A. Smith Summer in Skye I. 124 Lachlan Roy was a little, cheery, agile, red squirrel of a man.
2.
a. With the, in generalized sense; also, the genus Sciurus or the sub-family Sciurina to which this belongs.Many species or varieties are distinguished by specific epithets, as Alpine, Barbary, Brazilian, Carolina, etc., black, grey, red, striped, etc., cat-, fox-, palm-squirrel. See also flying squirrel n., ground-squirrel n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel) > collectively
squirrel1436
squirrel1605
squirrel1834
1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. i. vi. 196 Thear skips the Squirrell, seeming Weather-wise.
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 656 Of the Sqvirrell.
1668 W. Charleton Onomasticon Zoicon 21 Sciurus,..the Squirrel.
1766 T. Pennant Brit. Zool. i. 44 Those vast leaps the squirrel takes from tree to tree.
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth IV. 27 A few of the numerous varieties of the squirrel.
1801 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. II. i. 136 The Squirrel feeds on the buds and young shoots of trees, and is said to be particularly fond of those of the fir and pine.
1834 H. McMurtrie tr. G. Cuvier Animal Kingdom (abridged ed.) 80 In the Squirrel, properly so called, the hairs of the tail are arranged on the sides, so as to resemble a feather.
b. plural = 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel) > collectively
squirrel1436
squirrel1605
squirrel1834
1834 H. McMurtrie tr. G. Cuvier Animal Kingdom (abridged ed.) 80 It is probable that we shall have to separate from the Squirrels certain species which have cheek pouches like the Hamsters.
1842 Penny Cycl. XXII. 397/2 The geographic range of the Squirrels is very wide both in the Old and New World.
c1880 Cassell's Nat. Hist. III. 91 The true Ground Squirrels (Tamias) are distinguished from the rest of the Squirrels (Sciurinæ), and approach the Marmots.
c. elliptical. A variety of squirrel skin. Also, squirrel-fur in fashionable use (in the 19th and 20th cent.). Also elliptical, a coat of squirrel fur.
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society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > skin or hide > skin with hair attached or fur > [noun] > of squirrel
strandlingc1299
vaira1300
miniverc1300
calaber1362
pured miniver1379
purray1429
pured?1435
squirrel1436
pople1493
pure1512
amice1548
squirrel1827
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for body or trunk (and limbs) > [noun] > coat > types of > made of specific material
skin coat1533
buff1598
buff coat1633
hair-camlet1676
duffel1852
Guernsey coat1859
rabbit1877
polo coat1880
lammy coat1916
sheepskin1917
teddy bear1925
ranch mink1934
Persian1957
Persian lamb1959
leathers1962
leopard1973
Afghan1974
sable1975
squirrel1978
1827 Manch. Guardian 27 Oct. 1/2 (advt.) A perfectly new, elegant..and fashionable assortment of Furs, consisting of Chinchilla, Russia Fitch,..Squirrel and Sable.
1895 Army & Navy Co-op. Soc. Price List 15 Sept. 1038 Cape, lined throughout with grey and white Squirrel.
1897 Daily News 30 Oct. 6/5 White lynx, squirrel, and the curly hair of the Mongolian goat.
1904 Westm. Gaz. 1 Dec. 8/2 This Russian squirrel..makes an excellent coat.
1930 P. Hambledon Straight Flame iv. 169 A fur coat..fashioned of the softest silvery squirrel from Manchuria.
1978 Country Life 31 Aug. 598/3 There are..squirrels and durable musquashes for the less well heeled.
d. A fashion shade of silver-grey resembling the colour of the fur of the grey squirrel.
ΚΠ
1923 Daily Mail 26 Mar. 6 Colours are: Nut, Mastic, Navy, Squirrel, Beaver.
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the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel) > genus Cynomys (prairie-dog)
prairie dog1804
wishtonwish1806
prairie squirrel1808
squirrel1808
prairie marmot1826
1808 Z. M. Pike Acct. Exped. Sources Mississippi (1810) ii. 156 (note) The Wishtonwish of the Indians, prairie dogs of some travellers; or squirrels as I should be inclined to denominate them; reside on the prairies of Louisiana in towns or villages.
1811 H. M. Brackenridge Jrnl. 3 June in Views Louisiana (1814) 239 I happened on a village of barking squirrels, or prairie dogs, as they have been called.
4. Ichthyology. One or other of various species of fish belonging to the family Holocentridæ, esp. Holocentrus erythræus ( Holocentrum sogo).
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the world > animals > fish > superorder Acanthopterygii (spiny fins) > [noun] > order Beryciformes > member of family Holocentridae (soldier-fish)
squirrel1735
squirrel-fish1803
soldier-fish1882
red man1890
1735 Philos. Trans. 1733–4 (Royal Soc.) 38 315 Perca marina rubra. The Squirrel. It is a good eating Fish.
1876 G. B. Goode Catal. Fishes Bermudas 50 Their voracity is very great, and the tyro in angling usually finds his first prize to be a ‘Squirrel’.
5. technical. (See quot. 1839.)
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the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile manufacture > treating or processing textile materials > treating or processing cotton > [noun] > equipment for carding
squirrel1839
taker-in1850
squirrel card1851
tummer1877
trowel-gauge1902
1839 A. Ure Dict. Arts 348 Some cards [for carding cotton] consist entirely of cylinders, the central main cylinder being surrounded by a series of smaller ones called urchins or squirrels.
Compounds
C1. attributive and in other combinations.
a.
(a) Simple attributive.
squirrel bell n.
ΚΠ
1862 Catal. Internat. Exhib., Brit. II. No. 6364 Clang bells for cattle; ferret bells; squirrel bells.
squirrel gun n.
ΚΠ
1902 Munsey's Mag. 26 513/1 Men armed with squirrel guns..from the back counties of Georgia.
squirrel hole n.
ΚΠ
1851 Zoologist 9 3298 There is a bird here which lives in the squirrel-holes in the ground.
squirrel hunt n.
ΚΠ
1817 J. Bradbury Trav. Amer. 289 The squirrels..are prevented from an inordinate increase by the frequency of squirrel hunts by the riflemen.
1860 M. Reid Hunters' Feast (new ed.) xix To make a successful squirrel-hunt two persons at least are necessary.
squirrel rifle n.
ΚΠ
1901 Scribner's Mag. 29 389/1 Garnett himself fell with a bullet from a mountaineer's squirrel rifle.
squirrel track n.
ΚΠ
1844 R. W. Emerson Ess. (1901) 2nd Ser. 245 Western roads, which opened stately enough,..and ended in a squirrel-track.
(b) Appositive.
squirrel family n.
ΚΠ
1894–5 R. Lydekker Royal Nat. Hist. III. 70 The Squirrel family..includes the true flying squirrels, ordinary squirrels, marmots, and susliks.
squirrel tribe n.
ΚΠ
1860 M. Reid Hunters' Feast (new ed.) xix The naturalist stated many facts in relation to the squirrel tribe, that were new to most of us.
b. With the sense ‘made of, obtained from, the squirrel’.
squirrel coat n.
ΚΠ
1936 ‘E. M. Delafield’ Provincial Lady in Amer. 235 Ella, elegant..in..grey squirrel coat.
1969 L. Hellman Unfinished Woman xi. 153 A little girl in a fine squirrel coat and hat.
squirrel fur n.
ΚΠ
1882 S. F. A. Caulfeild & B. C. Saward Dict. Needlework 459/1 Squirrel Fur... There are seven varieties of this Fur.
squirrel hat n.
squirrel lining n.
ΚΠ
1974 Selfridge Xmas Catal. 14 Leather coat with silvered racoon collar and squirrel lining, £330.00.
squirrel lock n.
ΚΠ
1882 S. F. A. Caulfeild & B. C. Saward Dict. Needlework 459/2 Squirrel Lock..is that portion of the grey squirrels' fur that grows..on the belly.
squirrel pie n.
ΚΠ
1788 M. Cutler Jrnl. 7 Sept. in W. P. Cutler & J. P. Cutler Life, Jrnls. & Corr. M. Cutler (1888) I. 419 Dined..on venison steak and squirrel pie; very good dinner.
1883 Sunday Mag. Oct. 628/1 Squirrel-pie is a well-known luxury in some parts of England, and is far superior to rabbit-pie.
squirrel skin adj. and n.
ΚΠ
1689 London Gaz. No. 2498/4 Stolen.., a red and white Squirrel-skin Peticoat.
1710 Tatler No. 245. ⁋2 A musk-coloured velvet mantle lined with squirrel skins.
1832 J. R. McCulloch Dict. Commerce (1834) 203 Calabar Skin,..the Siberian squirrel skin.
squirrel tail n.
ΚΠ
a1430 Seven Sages (Cott. Galba) 3104 He gert it dub..With swerel tailes ful blak also.
c. Combinations with verbal nouns, (participial) adjectives, and agent nouns.
(a)
squirrel-coloured adj.
ΚΠ
1876 T. Hardy Hand of Ethelberta I. vi. 67 The east gleamed upon Ethelberta's squirrel-coloured hair.
squirrel-limbed adj.
ΚΠ
1631 B. Jonson Staple of Newes v. iii. 31 in Wks. II H' has almost kill'd his maid,..But that she's Cat-liu'd, and Squirrill-limb'd, with throwing bed-staues at her.
squirrel-trimmed adj.
(b)
squirrel-hunting n.
ΚΠ
1665 C. Cotton Scarronnides 25 Æneas and the Queen have made,..A match to go,..Into the Woods a Squirrel hunting.
1704 Dict. Rusticum Squirrel-hunting, the proper time to hunt this little Animal, is at the fall of the Leaf.
c1790 Encycl. Brit. VI. 666/1 Squirrel-hunting is a noted diversion in country places [in New England].
1847 J. O. Halliwell Dict. Archaic & Provinc. Words II Squirrel-hunting, a curious Derbyshire custom [etc.].
squirrel-shooting n.
ΚΠ
1860 M. Reid Hunters' Feast (new ed.) xix Squirrel-shooting is by no means poor sport.
squirrel-stoning n.
(c)
squirrel-hunter n.
ΚΠ
1860 M. Reid Hunters' Feast (new ed.) xix The height..is one of those marvels witnessed by every squirrel-hunter.
(d)
squirrel-like adv. and adj.
ΚΠ
1849 Sketches Nat. Hist.: Mammalia IV. 22 They lift their food to their mouths while sitting squirrel-like.
1862 E. Bulwer-Lytton Strange Story II. xxxiv. 271 The squirrel-like opossums frolicked on the feathery boughs.
C2.
a. Special combinations.† squirrel's brains n. Obsolete (see quot. and cf. squirrel-minded adj.).
squirrel-cage n. a cylindrical cage in which squirrels are confined, and which revolves as they move; also transferred a structure resembling this; spec. a form of rotor resembling a squirrel-cage, used in small electric motors (usually attributive).
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the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > zoo > [noun] > squirrel-cage
squirrel-cage1821
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > electrical engineering > motor > [noun] > rotor
squirrel-cage1821
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth III. xiii. 265 We will never find them to-night amongst all these..squirrel-cages, and rabbit-holes.
1831 Ann. Reg. (1832) 323 He had a cage like a squirrel-cage, and two white mice in it.
1835 A. Ure Philos. Manuf. 163 Over this casing..a fan is placed,..which sucks out the dust through the wire or squirrel cage.
1887 W. Cory Lett. & Jrnls. (1897) 526 In a revolving squirrel-cage way.
1895 S. P. Thompson Polyphase Electr. Currents iv. 117 A solid cylinder of iron is improved [as a rotor] by surrounding it with a mantle of copper, or by a squirrel~cage of copper bars.
1906 G. F. Goodchild & C. F. Tweney Technol. & Sci. Dict. 706/1 Squirrel Cage Rotor, a rotor or revolving portion of an alternating current motor, built up of parallel bars of copper, joined together at their ends by a conducting rim or disc.
1910 Encycl. Brit. III. 580/1 This squirrel cage ensures that the several axes of the rollers keep parallel to the axis of the journal during the rolling motion.
1916 Standard. Rules Amer. Inst. Electr. Engin. 40 Squirrel-Cage and Amortisseur Windings.
1920 Whittaker's Electr. Engineer's Pocket-bk. (ed. 4) 552 Motors with squirrel-cage rotors require special features in the rotor to obtain large starting torque without large losses at normal load.
1928 G. E. Sterling Radio Man. 70 The terms ‘squirrel cage rotor’ and ‘wound rotor’ are often used to describe rotors; the first means the simple kind with conductors of plain bars of metal and no slip-rings or other moving contacts.
1972 Sci. Amer. Oct. 114/2 The air is circulated and exhausted by a system of squirrel-cage blowers.
squirrel card n. (see quot. and sense 5).
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the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile manufacture > treating or processing textile materials > treating or processing cotton > [noun] > equipment for carding
squirrel1839
taker-in1850
squirrel card1851
tummer1877
trowel-gauge1902
1851 Art Jrnl. Illustr. Catal. p. iv**/2 The large card-drum is generally surmounted by urchin or squirrel cards instead of tops.
squirrel-dog n. a dog used for hunting squirrels.
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the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > dogs used for specific purposes > [noun] > sporting or hunting dog > that hunts specific animals
bear dog1616
wolf-dog1652
coney dog1681
foumart-dog?1748
bird dog1755
boar-dog1792
bear hound1807
wolf-hound1823
toller1831
coon-dog1833
pig-dog1845
rat terrier1851
ratter1858
rabbiter1859
squirrel-dog1860
badgerer1876
boar-hound1884
turkey-dog1895
coon hound1920
1860 M. Reid Hunters' Feast (new ed.) xix A good squirrel-dog is a useful animal.
squirrel eyes n. sharp eyes like those of a squirrel.
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the world > life > the body > sense organ > sight organ > types of sight organ > [noun]
ferret-eye1590
squirrel eyes1600
hawk's eye1684
piercer1752
gimlet-eye1825
lynx-eye1828
bug-eyes1905
camera eye1908
night eye1934
1600 S. Rowlands Letting of Humors Blood Satyre ii. sig. D3 With narrow brow, and Squirrell eyes, he showes.
squirrel-fish n. = sense 4 ( Cent. Dict. 1891).
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the world > animals > fish > superorder Acanthopterygii (spiny fins) > [noun] > order Beryciformes > member of family Holocentridae (soldier-fish)
squirrel1735
squirrel-fish1803
soldier-fish1882
red man1890
1803 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. IV. ii. 439 Squirrel Sparus... Size of a common Perch: native of the American seas, where it is known by the name of the Grunt, or Squirrel-fish.
1867 H. Latham Black & White 122 Bastard snappers and squirrel-fish, the like of which I had never seen before.
1888 G. B. Goode Amer. Fishes 46 The Squirrel fish, Serranus fascicularis, is a beautifully colored species.
squirrel-headed adj. = squirrel-minded adj.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > lack of understanding > stupidity, dullness of intellect > [adjective]
sloweOE
stuntc960
dullOE
hardOE
stuntlyc1000
sotc1050
dillc1175
dulta1225
simplea1325
heavy1340
astonedc1374
sheepishc1380
dull-witteda1387
lourd1390
steerishc1411
ass-likea1425
brainless?a1439
deafc1440
sluggishc1450
short-witted1477
obtuse1509
peakish1519
wearish1519
deaf, or dumb as a beetle1520
doileda1522
gross1526
headlessa1530
stulty1532
ass-headed1533
pot-headed1533
stupid?1541
sheep's head1542
doltish1543
dumpish1545
assish1548
blockish1548
slow-witted1548
blockheaded1549
surd1551
dull-headed1552
hammer-headed1552
skit-brained?1553
buzzardly1561
witless1562
log-headeda1566
assy1566
sottish1566
dastardly1567
stupidious1567
beetle-headed1570
calvish1570
bluntish1578
cod's-headed1578
grout-headed1578
bedaft1579
dull-pated1580
blate1581
buzzard-like1581
long-eared1582
dullard1583
woodena1586
duncical1588
leaden-headed1589
buzzard1592
dorbellical1592
dunstical1592
heavy-headeda1593
shallow-brained1592
blunt-witted1594
mossy1597
Bœotian1598
clay-brained1598
fat1598
fat-witted1598
knotty-pated1598
stupidous1598
wit-lost1599
barren1600
duncifiedc1600
lourdish1600
stockish1600
thick1600
booby1603
leaden-pated1603
partless1603
thin-headed1603
leaden-skulledc1604
blockhead1606
frost-brained1606
ram-headed1608
beef-witted1609
insulse1609
leaden-spirited1609
asininec1610
clumse1611
blockheadly1612
wattle-headed1613
flata1616
logger-headeda1616
puppy-headeda1616
shallow-patedc1616
thick-brained1619
half-headed1621
buzzard-blinda1625
beef-brained1628
toom-headed1629
thick-witted1634
woollen-witted1635
squirrel-headed1637
clod-pated1639
lean-souled1639
muddy-headed1642
leaden-witteda1645
as sad as any mallet1645
under-headed1646
fat-headed1647
half-witted1647
insipid1651
insulsate1652
soft-headed1653
thick-skulleda1657
muddish1658
non-intelligent1659
whey-brained1660
sap-headed1665
timber-headed1666
leather-headeda1668
out of (one's) tree1669
boobily1673
thoughtless1673
lourdly1674
logger1675
unintelligenta1676
Bœotic1678
chicken-brained1678
under-witted1683
loggerhead1684
dunderheaded1692
unintelligible1694
buffle-headed1697
crassicc1700
numbskulled1707
crassous1708
doddy-polled1708
haggis-headed1715
niddy-noddy1722
muzzy1723
pudding-headed1726
sumphish1728
pitcher-souleda1739
duncey1743
hebete1743
chuckheaded1756
dumb1756
duncely1757
imbecile1766
mutton-headed1768
chuckle-headed1770
jobbernowl1770
dowfarta1774
boobyish1778
wittol1780
staumrel1787
opaquec1789
stoopid1791
mud-headed1793
borné1795
muzzy-headed1798
nog-headed1800
thick-headed1801
gypit1804
duncish1805
lightweight1809
numbskull1814
tup-headed1816
chuckle-pate1820
unintellectuala1821
dense1822
ninnyish1822
dunch1825
fozy1825
potato-headed1826
beef-headed1828
donkeyish1831
blockheadish1833
pinheaded1837
squirrel-minded1837
pumpkin-headed1838
tomfoolish1838
dundering1840
chicken-headed1842
like a bump on a log1842
ninny-minded1849
numbheadeda1852
nincompoopish1852
suet-brained1852
dolly1853
mullet-headed1853
sodden1853
fiddle-headed1854
numb1854
bovine1855
logy1859
crass1861
unsmart1861
off his chump1864
wooden-headed1865
stupe1866
lean-minded1867
duffing1869
cretinous1871
doddering1871
thick-head1873
doddling1874
stupido1879
boneheaded1883
woolly-headed1883
leaden-natured1889
suet-headed1890
sam-sodden1891
dopey1896
turnip-headed1898
bonehead1903
wool-witted1905
peanut-headed1906
peanut-brained1907
dilly1909
torpid-minded1909
retardate1912
nitwitted1917
meat-headed1918
mug1922
cloth-headed1925
loopy1925
nitwit1928
lame-brained1929
dead from the neck up1930
simpy1932
nail-headed1936
square-headed1936
dingbats1937
pinhead1939
dim-witted1940
pea-brained1942
clueless1943
lobotomized1943
retarded1949
pointy-headed1950
clottish1952
like a stunned mullet1953
silly (or crazy) as a two-bob watch1954
out to lunch1955
pin-brained1958
dozy1959
eejity1964
out of one's tiny mind1965
doofus1967
twitty1967
twittish1969
twatty1975
twattish1976
blur1977
dof1979
goofus1981
dickheaded1991
dickish1991
numpty1992
cockish1996
1637 Abp. J. Williams Holy Table 59 That Squirrel-headed young man, that..would throw the Communion-table out of doores, and build him a close Altar, out of faction and singularity.
1953 Sun (Baltimore) 30 Jan. b4/1 Former President Harry S. Truman was quoted as saying..that action..to curb President Eisenhower's Government reorganisation powers ‘was a squirrel-headed thing to do’.
squirrel-headedness n.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > lack of understanding > stupidity, dullness of intellect > [noun]
hardnessOE
stuntnessc1000
sotshipc1050
witlessnessa1100
sotheada1200
dullness1398
bluntness1483
slowness1495
grossnessa1530
stupidity?1541
assishness?1548
dastardness1552
lourderie1555
dastardliness1556
blockishness1561
doltishness1569
sottage1569
sheepishness1574
doltry1581
sottishness1589
doltage1593
dorbellism1593
grout-headry1600
opacity1611
duncery1615
dunstery1615
stupidness1619
hebetude1621
insulsity1623
unintelligence1634
obtuseness1648
jobbernowlism1652
dullery1653
non-intelligence1653
blockheadishness1656
crassness1664
blockheadedness1716
stolidness1727
blockheadism1753
numbskullity1779
nincompoophood1791
duncishness1805
numbskullism1806
foziness1821
noodledum1821
obtusity1823
soft-headedness1823
noodledom1827
duncehood1829
dunderheadedness1830
sumphishness1830
asininity1831
dunderheadism1836
stockishness1837
dullardness1840
fat-headedness1840
stupor1845
duncedom1847
misintelligence1848
nincompoopery1850
wooden-headedness1850
dumminess1852
jolterheadedness1852
ninnyship1852
donkeyism1855
dumbness1860
beef-wittedness1863
crassitude1865
donkeyhood1869
slow-wittedness1869
chuckle-headedness1880
leatherheadedness1880
pinheadedness1884
numbskulledness1885
donkeydom1889
thickheadedness1889
density1894
moronism1922
nitwittedness1931
nitwittery1931
noodleness1931
dopiness1942
squirrel-headedness1955
nincompoopism1957
dim-wittedness1960
clottishness1961
1955 E. Pound Section: Rock-drill lxxxv. 6 Not to pamper this squirrel-headedness.
squirrel-minded adj. shallow-brained.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > lack of understanding > stupidity, dullness of intellect > [adjective]
sloweOE
stuntc960
dullOE
hardOE
stuntlyc1000
sotc1050
dillc1175
dulta1225
simplea1325
heavy1340
astonedc1374
sheepishc1380
dull-witteda1387
lourd1390
steerishc1411
ass-likea1425
brainless?a1439
deafc1440
sluggishc1450
short-witted1477
obtuse1509
peakish1519
wearish1519
deaf, or dumb as a beetle1520
doileda1522
gross1526
headlessa1530
stulty1532
ass-headed1533
pot-headed1533
stupid?1541
sheep's head1542
doltish1543
dumpish1545
assish1548
blockish1548
slow-witted1548
blockheaded1549
surd1551
dull-headed1552
hammer-headed1552
skit-brained?1553
buzzardly1561
witless1562
log-headeda1566
assy1566
sottish1566
dastardly1567
stupidious1567
beetle-headed1570
calvish1570
bluntish1578
cod's-headed1578
grout-headed1578
bedaft1579
dull-pated1580
blate1581
buzzard-like1581
long-eared1582
dullard1583
woodena1586
duncical1588
leaden-headed1589
buzzard1592
dorbellical1592
dunstical1592
heavy-headeda1593
shallow-brained1592
blunt-witted1594
mossy1597
Bœotian1598
clay-brained1598
fat1598
fat-witted1598
knotty-pated1598
stupidous1598
wit-lost1599
barren1600
duncifiedc1600
lourdish1600
stockish1600
thick1600
booby1603
leaden-pated1603
partless1603
thin-headed1603
leaden-skulledc1604
blockhead1606
frost-brained1606
ram-headed1608
beef-witted1609
insulse1609
leaden-spirited1609
asininec1610
clumse1611
blockheadly1612
wattle-headed1613
flata1616
logger-headeda1616
puppy-headeda1616
shallow-patedc1616
thick-brained1619
half-headed1621
buzzard-blinda1625
beef-brained1628
toom-headed1629
thick-witted1634
woollen-witted1635
squirrel-headed1637
clod-pated1639
lean-souled1639
muddy-headed1642
leaden-witteda1645
as sad as any mallet1645
under-headed1646
fat-headed1647
half-witted1647
insipid1651
insulsate1652
soft-headed1653
thick-skulleda1657
muddish1658
non-intelligent1659
whey-brained1660
sap-headed1665
timber-headed1666
leather-headeda1668
out of (one's) tree1669
boobily1673
thoughtless1673
lourdly1674
logger1675
unintelligenta1676
Bœotic1678
chicken-brained1678
under-witted1683
loggerhead1684
dunderheaded1692
unintelligible1694
buffle-headed1697
crassicc1700
numbskulled1707
crassous1708
doddy-polled1708
haggis-headed1715
niddy-noddy1722
muzzy1723
pudding-headed1726
sumphish1728
pitcher-souleda1739
duncey1743
hebete1743
chuckheaded1756
dumb1756
duncely1757
imbecile1766
mutton-headed1768
chuckle-headed1770
jobbernowl1770
dowfarta1774
boobyish1778
wittol1780
staumrel1787
opaquec1789
stoopid1791
mud-headed1793
borné1795
muzzy-headed1798
nog-headed1800
thick-headed1801
gypit1804
duncish1805
lightweight1809
numbskull1814
tup-headed1816
chuckle-pate1820
unintellectuala1821
dense1822
ninnyish1822
dunch1825
fozy1825
potato-headed1826
beef-headed1828
donkeyish1831
blockheadish1833
pinheaded1837
squirrel-minded1837
pumpkin-headed1838
tomfoolish1838
dundering1840
chicken-headed1842
like a bump on a log1842
ninny-minded1849
numbheadeda1852
nincompoopish1852
suet-brained1852
dolly1853
mullet-headed1853
sodden1853
fiddle-headed1854
numb1854
bovine1855
logy1859
crass1861
unsmart1861
off his chump1864
wooden-headed1865
stupe1866
lean-minded1867
duffing1869
cretinous1871
doddering1871
thick-head1873
doddling1874
stupido1879
boneheaded1883
woolly-headed1883
leaden-natured1889
suet-headed1890
sam-sodden1891
dopey1896
turnip-headed1898
bonehead1903
wool-witted1905
peanut-headed1906
peanut-brained1907
dilly1909
torpid-minded1909
retardate1912
nitwitted1917
meat-headed1918
mug1922
cloth-headed1925
loopy1925
nitwit1928
lame-brained1929
dead from the neck up1930
simpy1932
nail-headed1936
square-headed1936
dingbats1937
pinhead1939
dim-witted1940
pea-brained1942
clueless1943
lobotomized1943
retarded1949
pointy-headed1950
clottish1952
like a stunned mullet1953
silly (or crazy) as a two-bob watch1954
out to lunch1955
pin-brained1958
dozy1959
eejity1964
out of one's tiny mind1965
doofus1967
twitty1967
twittish1969
twatty1975
twattish1976
blur1977
dof1979
goofus1981
dickheaded1991
dickish1991
numpty1992
cockish1996
1837 S. Smith Lett. to Singleton in Wks. (1859) II. 276/2 What a strange thing it is that such a man..should be so squirrel-minded as to wish for a movement without object or end!
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > lack of understanding > stupidity, dullness of intellect > [noun] > empty or stupid head
skull1523
jolthead1533
fool's head1577
jolting pate1579
noddle1579
jobbernowl1598
loggerhead1598
cod's head1607
squirrel's brains1647
jolterhead1699
numbskull1718
fiddle-head1887
1647 N. Ward Simple Cobler Aggawam 25 Having nothing..but a few Squirrills braines, to help them frisk from one ill-favor'd fashion to another.
b. Botany, Zoology, and Ichthyology.
squirrel briar n. a name used in New England for either of two local species of Smilax, S. glauca or S. rotundifolia, deciduous prickly vines bearing blue-black berries.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > thorny berry-bush > [noun] > other thorny berry-bushes
pyracantha1665
Mysore thorn1814
squirrel briar1910
1910 C. B. Graves et al. Catal. Flowering Plants & Ferns Connecticut 125 Smilax glauca..Saw, Cat or Squirrel Briar. Common. Dry or moist open woods and thickets.
1910 C. B. Graves et al. Catal. Flowering Plants & Ferns Connecticut 125 Smilax rotundifolia..Common Green Briar. Horse, Cat, Bull or Squirrel Briar.
1979 C. MacLeod Family Vault viii. 53 Something grabbed her..but it was only a squirrel briar.
squirrel-corn n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > poppy and allied flowers > allied flowers
poppyOE
horned poppy1548
yellow poppy1548
sea poppy1562
garden poppy1577
wind-rose1597
prickly poppy1648
squatmore1691
oriental poppy1731
Welsh poppy1731
infernal fig1760
Mexican poppy1811
Meconopsis1836
redcap1846
horn-poppy1851
squirrel-corn1856
eschscholtzia1857
dielytra1864
Dicentra1866
yellow thistle1866
turkey-corn1884
Shirley poppy1886
1856 A. Gray Man. Bot. Northern U.S. (1860) 27 Dicentra Canadensis... Squirrel-Corn.
squirrel-cup n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1877 W. C. Bryant Twenty-seventh Mar. in Poems 30 The squirrel cups [= liverleaf], a graceful company, Hide in their bells, a soft aërial blue.
Categories »
squirrel-fish n. (see quots.).
squirrel flying phalanger n. (see quots.).
ΚΠ
c1880 Cassell's Nat. Hist. III. 207 The Squirrel Flying Phalanger,..Petaurus sciureus.
c1880 Cassell's Nat. Hist. III. 207 Probably it..has been called the Squirrel Flying Phalanger by mistake.
squirrel hake n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1882 D. S. Jordan & C. H. Gilbert Synopsis Fishes N. Amer. 799 Phycis tenuis, Codling; White hake; Squirrel-hake.
squirrel hawk n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1872 E. Coues Key to N. Amer. Birds Index 354/2 Squirrel Hawk... Ferrugineous Buzzard.
squirrel monkey n. (see quots.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > order Primates > suborder Anthropoidea (higher primates) > [noun] > family Cebidae > genus Saimiri (squirrel monkey)
monkey squirrel1674
squirrel monkey1773
aurora1774
saimiri1774
sakawinki1954
1773 Gentleman's Mag. 43 219 Of these I noticed the following, viz. the Squirrel Monkey [etc.].
1824 E. Griffith et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom (1827) I. 307 The Saïmiri, or Squirrel monkey, is a beautiful and elegant little animal found in Brazil, Cayenne, etc.
1879 E. P. Wright Animal Life 49 The genus Saimaris (Chrysothrix) contains but three species. These Squirrel Monkeys are active little creatures.
squirrel mouse n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 533 There is a flying Ponticke or Scythian Mouse, which we may call the broad-Squerrell-Mouse.
squirrel opossum n. (see quots.).
ΚΠ
1800 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. I. ii. 498 Squirrel Opossum. Didelphis Sciurea.
1827 E. Griffith et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom V. 200 Norfolk Island Squirrel,..Squirrel Opossum.
Derivatives
ˈsquirrelish adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [adjective] > of or relating to rodents > of family Sciuromorpha > like a squirrel
squirrelish1834
squirrelline1872
squirrellian1874
squirrelly1925
1834 W. Beckford Italy; with Sketches Spain & Portugal II. 363 Timoni, with his prying, squirrelish look, and malicious propensities.
ˈsquirrelline adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [adjective] > of or relating to rodents > of family Sciuromorpha > like a squirrel
squirrelish1834
squirrelline1872
squirrellian1874
squirrelly1925
1872 J. Ruskin Fors Clavigera II. xviii These three moist-throated men and the squirrelline boy.
squiˈrrellian adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [adjective] > of or relating to rodents > of family Sciuromorpha > like a squirrel
squirrelish1834
squirrelline1872
squirrellian1874
squirrelly1925
1874 J. Ruskin Fors Clavigera IV. xliv This is..their work in the world. When they rest from their squirrellian revolutions,..these are what will follow them.
Draft additions September 2020
squirrel pox n. (a) a usually mild disease affecting several species of squirrel in North America, caused by a poxvirus of the genus Leporipoxvirus and characterized by the development of fibrous nodules, esp. in the skin (now usually called squirrel fibroma or squirrel fibromatosis); (b) an epidemic disease with a very high mortality rate affecting Eurasian red squirrels ( Sciurus vulgaris), chiefly in Britain and Ireland, characterized by ulcerating lesions of the skin, and caused by a poxvirus of undetermined generic status.Frequently as a modifier.The epidemic disease (sense (b)) is one of the factors contributing to the decline of the red squirrel population in Britain and Ireland; its causative virus is believed to be carried by grey squirrels ( Sciurus carolinensis) introduced from North America, in whom it causes little or no disease.
ΚΠ
1969 Jrnl. Amer. Vet. Med. Assoc. 155 1124/2 This condition may have been superimposed upon preexisting squirrelpox (fibroma) lesions.
2000 Scotsman (Nexis) 22 Dec. 14 In a world besotted with people famous for being famous and the belief that a religious festival equates with spending power, news of squirrel pox was a welcome diversion.
2006 Brit. Wildlife Apr. 271/3 Red squirrels, too, face an uncertain future owing to the spread of Grey Squirrels S. carolinensis, which disseminate the squirrel-pox virus and continue to take a terrible toll of Reds.
2019 Daily Tel. (Nexis) 20 Aug. 10 Scotland's red squirrels could be wiped out in a year..unless the Government funds a squirrel pox vaccine.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1915; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
squirrelv.
a. intransitive. To hunt squirrels. Also figurative.
b. transitive. To hunt or chase like squirrels. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > progressive motion > order of movement > following behind > follow [verb (transitive)] > pursue > harassingly
suea1350
squirrel1589
ferret1600
hound1605
1589 J. Lyly Pappe with Hatchet B ij Obscenitie? Naie, now I am too nice, squirrilitie were a better word: well, let me alone to squirrell them.
1665 C. Cotton Scarronnides 35 But young Ascanius, hops o' th' house, Car'd not for Squirrelling a louse.
c. intransitive. To go round in circles like a caged squirrel; to run or scurry (round) like a squirrel.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > movement in circle or curve > move in a circle or curve [verb (intransitive)] > move in a circle > go round in circles
windle1623
squirrel1921
1921 Sat. Westm. Gaz. 29 Jan. 21/1 His deeply affectionate but explosive father inexhaustibly squirrelling round the cage of conventional ideas.
1953 A. Clarke Coll. Plays (1963) 374 My soul was waiting for me, so small, It wriggled and squirrelled to my shoulder.
1966 D. Francis Flying Finish xvii. 200 The useless thoughts squirrelled round and round, achieving nothing.
1983 ‘M. Yorke’ Find me Villain v. 39 Nina's mind went on squirrelling round unhappily.
2. transitive. To store away in the manner of a squirrel; to save, hoard; to cache. Rarely with up and without adverb.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > supply > storage > store [verb (transitive)] > in a concealed or remote place
to stow away1795
stash1797
cache1856
depot1921
squirrel1939
1939 J. Steinbeck Grapes of Wrath xxviii. 569 I been squirrelin' money away.
1949 M. Mead Male & Female vii. 145 Mouths first suck and later bite, and are capable of spitting, of squirrelling food in the cheek all night.
1953 J. Blish Case of Conscience in If. Worlds of Sci. Fiction I. iv. 40 I've got more plans to that effect squirrelled away.
1959 J. Braine Vodi vi. 95 Dick felt somehow provident, squirrelling up at least one good event to remember in the winter.
1965 ‘G. Holden’ Don't go it Alone (1966) xvii. 141 He wasn't the type of person to squirrel away something and forget it.
1974 D. Smith Look back with Love viii. 68 I started a bottom drawer, but it petered out after I had squirrelled one tea-cosy and a pen-wiper.
1981 N. Freeling One Damn Thing viii. 58 Arlette..was good at squirrelling away things in obscure places.
Derivatives
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting specific animals > [adjective] > specific animal
squirrelinga1603
fox-hunting1830
a1603 T. Cartwright Confut. Rhemists New Test. (1618) 540 Which we might worthely call a phrensie if it had not some support of grauer men, then are those squirriling Iesuits.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1915; most recently modified version published online June 2019).
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