Weasel Definition

wēzəl
weaseled, weaseling, weasels
noun
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 found worldwide.
Webster's New World
A sly, cunning, or sneaky person.
Webster's New World

Any of the carnivorous mammals of the genus Mustela, having a slender body, a long tail and usually a light brown upper coat and light-coloured belly.

Wiktionary
The least weasel, Mustela nivalis.
Wiktionary

The taxonomic family Mustelidae is also called the weasel family.

Wiktionary
Synonyms:
verb
To be evasive; equivocate.
American Heritage
To use weasel words.
Webster's New World
To avoid or evade a commitment or responsibility.
Webster's New World

To achieve by clever or devious means.

Wiktionary
(reflexive) To gain something for oneself by clever or devious means.
Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Weasel

Noun

Singular:
weasel
Plural:
weasels

Origin of Weasel

  • From Middle English wesele, from Old English weosule, from Proto-Germanic *wisulǭ (compare West Frisian wezeling, Low German Wessel, Wissel, Dutch wezel, German Wiesel, Swedish vessla), from Proto-Indo-European *wiselos (compare Irish fíal 'ferret'), from *wis- 'musk, stink' (compare Latin virus 'slimy liquid, mud; stench', Sanskrit विस्र (visra) 'musty, smelling of raw meat)'.

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English wesele from Old English wesle

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • The verb comes from the supposed cunningness of the weasel.

    From Wiktionary

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