noun

1. any of several small insectivores (family Erinaceidae) of the Old World, with a shaggy coat and sharp spines on the back, which bristle and form a defense when the animal curls up
2. ☆ the American porcupine

3. Etymology: see fox ()

   a person regarded as being of a type that tends to see things in terms of a single, overarching viewpoint or philosophy
4. Mil.
   1. any of several defensive obstacles
   2. any of a series of defensive fortifications capable of continued resistance after being encircled

Etymology: hedge + hog: prob. from living in hedgerows and from the hoglike snout