weasel

wea·sel

A cute little weasel.

noun

The definition of a weasel is an animal in the genus Mustela that's thin, has a long tail and eats small animals, or a sneaky person.

An example of a weasel is the creature chased by a monkey around the mulberry bush.
An example of a weasel is a person who always finagles more than she or he deserves.

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"weasel." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 19 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Weasel>.

APA Style

weasel. (n.d.). Retrieved January 19th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Weasel

weasel

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 found worldwide
a sly, cunning, or sneaky person

Origin of weasel

Middle English wesel from Old English wesle, akin to German wiesel, probably from Indo-European base an unverified form weis-, to flow out (with reference to the rank odor emitted by the animal) from source virus, bison

to use weasel words
Informal to avoid or evade a commitment or responsibility: with out

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MLA Style

"weasel." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 19 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Weasel>.

APA Style

weasel. (n.d.). Retrieved January 19th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Weasel

weasel

noun

Any of various carnivorous mammals of the genus Mustela, having a long slender body, a long tail, short legs, and brownish fur that in many species turns white in winter.
A person regarded as sneaky or treacherous.

intransitive verb

wea·seled, wea·sel·ing, wea·sels, also wea·selled wea·sel·ling

To be evasive; equivocate.

Phrasal Verbs: weasel out Informal To back out of a situation or commitment in a sneaky or cowardly manner.

Origin of weasel

Middle English wesele from Old English wesle

weasel

ermine in brown summer phase

Mustela erminea

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.

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Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"weasel." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 19 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Weasel>.

APA Style

weasel. (n.d.). Retrieved January 19th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Weasel

Noun

(plural weasels)

The least weasel, Mustela nivalis.
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.
The taxonomic family Mustelidae is also called the weasel family.
A devious or sneaky person or animal.
A type of yarn winder used for counting the yardage of handspun yarn. It most commonly has a wooden peg or dowel that pops up from the gearing mechanism after a certain number of yards have been wound onto the winder.

Verb

(third-person singular simple present weasels, present participle weaseling or weaselling, simple past and past participle weaseled or weaselled)

To achieve by clever or devious means.
(reflexive) To gain something for oneself by clever or devious means.
(intransitive) To engage in clever or devious behavior.

Usage notes

Weaseling and weaseled are more common in the US. Weaselling and weaselled are more common in the UK.

Origin

From Middle English wesele, from Old English weosule, from Proto-Germanic *wisulÇ (compare West Frisian wezeling, Low German Wessel, Wissel, Dutch wezel, German Wiesel, Swedish vessla), from Proto-Indo-European *wiselos (compare Irish fÃal 'ferret'), from *wis- 'musk, stink' (compare Latin virus 'slimy liquid, mud; stench', Sanskrit à¤µà¤¿à¤¸à¥à¤° (visra) 'musty, smelling of raw meat)'.