rabbit

rab·bit

Use rabbit in a sentence

A very cute rabbit.

noun

The definition of a rabbit is a small, long eared, stubby tailed mammal with soft fur that bounces and burrows.

An example of a rabbit is the Warner Bros. character Bugs Bunny and the Disney character Thumper.

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"rabbit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 17 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/RABBIT>.

APA Style

rabbit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 17th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/RABBIT

rabbit

noun

pl. -·bits or -·bit

any of various swift, burrowing mammals (order Lagomorpha), smaller than most hares and characterized by soft fur, long ears, a stubby tail, and the bearing of naked young
the fur of a rabbit
loosely any hare
Welsh rabbit
Track & Field a runner who, early in the race, sets a fast pace, as to spur on teammates or exhaust a strong competitor

Origin of rabbit

Middle English rabette, young of the cony, probably from Middle French dialect, dialectal rabotte from Middle Dutch robbe, Flemish robbe

to hunt rabbits
Brit., Informal to talk continuously about unimportant matters; ramble: often with on
Informal to depart quickly; escape; flee

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MLA Style

"rabbit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 17 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/RABBIT>.

APA Style

rabbit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 17th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/RABBIT

rabbit

noun

pl. rab·bits, or rabbit

Any of various long-eared, short-tailed, burrowing mammals of the family Leporidae, such as the commonly domesticated species Oryctolagus cuniculus, native to Europe and widely introduced elsewhere, or the cottontail of the Americas.
A hare.
The flesh of a rabbit, used as food.
The fur of a rabbit or hare.
Sports
a. A competitor who is designated to set a fast pace for a teammate during a long-distance race.
b. A racehorse that is run at a fast pace early in a race in order to tire the favorite so that another horse can take the lead.
c. A mechanical decoy that is propelled around the track in a greyhound race to incite the dogs.

intransitive verb

rab·bit·ed, rab·bit·ing, rab·bits

To hunt rabbits or hares.

Origin of rabbit

Middle English rabet young rabbit probably from Old French from Middle Dutch robbe rabbit

Related Forms:

rab′bit·er
noun

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"rabbit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 17 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/RABBIT>.

APA Style

rabbit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 17th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/RABBIT

Noun

(plural rabbits)

A mammal of the family Leporidae, with long ears, long hind legs and a short, fluffy tail.
The pioneers survived by eating the small game they could get; rabbits, squirrels and occasionally a raccoon.
The fur of a rabbit typically used to imitate another animal's fur.
A runner in a distance race whose goal is mainly to set the pace, either to tire a specific rival so that a teammate can win or to help another break a record; a pacesetter.
(cricket) A very poor batsman; selected as a bowler or wicket-keeper.

Verb

(third-person singular simple present rabbits, present participle rabbitting or rabbiting, simple past and past participle rabbitted or rabbited)

(intransitive) To hunt rabbits.
(US, intransitive) To flee.
The informant seemed skittish, as if he was about to rabbit.

Origin

From Middle English rabet, from Middle French dialect (compare French dialect rabbotte, rabouillet (“baby rabbit")), from Walloon robÃ¨te, diminutive of Middle Dutch robbe (“rabbit; seal") (compare Dutch rob (“rabbit"), rob (“seal")), from Middle Low German robbe (“seal") (compare dialectal Low German Rubb, Robb, German Robbe (“seal")), from rubben (“ro rub"). More at rub.

Verb

(third-person singular simple present rabbits, present participle rabbiting, simple past and past participle rabbited)

(UK, intransitive) To talk incessantly and in a childish manner; to babble annoyingly.
Stop your infernal rabbiting! Use proper words or nobody will listen to you!
Commonly used in the form "to rabbit on"

Origin

From Cockney rhyming slang rabbit and pork, to talk.

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.