prairie dog
any of a genus (Cynomys, family Sciuridae) of small, burrowing rodents of North America, having a barking cry and living in colonies
prairie dog
noun
Any of several burrowing rodents of the genus Cynomys, having light brown fur and a warning call that sounds similar to a dog's bark. Prairie dogs lives in large colonies, chiefly in the Great Plains of North America.
prairie-dog
Noun
(plural prairie dogs)
Verb
(third-person singular simple present prairie dogs, present participle prairie dogging, simple past and past participle prairie dogged)
- (intransitive) To pop up from a hole or similar in a manner that resembles the way a prairie dog pops his head up from his burrow.
- Veronica in accounting is always prairie dogging from her desk whenever that new hunk from marketing walks by.
- (slang, euphemistic) To struggle to hold back an involuntary bowel movement.
Origin
By analogy with how the animal pops its head up from its burrow.
Verb
(third-person singular simple present prairie-dogs, present participle prairie-dogging, simple past and past participle prairie-dogged)
- Alternative form of prairie dog.
