weasel
weasel
Definition
wea·sel (wē′zəl)
noun pl. -·sels or -·sel
- any of various agile musteline carnivores (esp. genus Mustela) with a long, slender body, short legs, and a long, bushy tail: they feed on rats, mice, birds, eggs, etc. and are worldwide
- a sly, cunning, or sneaky person
Etymology: ME wesel < OE wesle, akin to Ger wiesel, prob. < IE base *weis-, to flow out (with reference to the rank odor emitted by the animal) > virus, bison
intransitive verb
- to use weasel words
- Informal to avoid or evade a commitment or responsibility: with out
wea′·selly adjective
weasel
Usage Examples
Converse of object
- go: Rude girls began to grin, his pants were giving in, Lend him a safety pin, or - pop goes the weasel!
- include: They have many predators including weasels, stoats, foxes, cats, owls, hawks, crows and even pheasants.
- see: You will see a weasel holding a young rabbit in the window.
- molest: And its also true that Charley molests weasels and other small rodents.
- chase: The best thing I liked was when you chased the weasels.
- spot: Home to much more than just our busy squirrels, you may even be lucky enough to spot a weasel.
Adjective modifier
- little: A plague of flies on your dressing rooms that's all I can say to him, sneaky underhand little weasel Wiltshire ways.
- Siberian: Cafe break then more; find a siberian weasel!
- crazed: I think we have to make love on the front lawn like crazed weasels NOW!
- wicked: Help Mole, Ratty, Toad and Badger in a race against time to overcome the wicked weasels!
- true: Stoats are sometimes called ' weasels ' in Ireland, where the true weasel does not occur.
Modifies a noun
- word: Out come the weasel words: God is not out there, he is in all of us.
- family: A member of the weasel family that grew to the size of a cat.
- wording: However, some weasel wording sucks out much of their meaning.
- way: There are various weasel ways they have of not categorizing these people.
- phrase: The GMC's ' respect for life ' is a weasel phrase that means little.
- coffee: Along with their four standard coffee drinks, Vietnam is noted for a rather curious concoction called ' weasel coffee ' .
Noun used with modifier
- ice: You know you ought to... and remember the ice weasels.
weasel Quotes
The weasel under the cocktail cabinet.
