packrat
Definition
- Noun:
- A bushy-tailed rodent of the genus Neotoma: A type of rodent native to western North America, known for its habit of collecting and hoarding various objects.
- A person who collects and keeps useless items: A colloquial term for someone who saves a large number of items that appear to have little value or use; a hoarder.
Usage Examples
Noun (Animal):
- We saw a packrat building a nest out of twigs and shiny bottle caps.
- The packrat's midden, a pile of collected debris, can be used by scientists to study past climates.
Noun (Person):
- My uncle is a packrat; his garage is filled with old newspapers and broken appliances.
- She's a digital packrat, never deleting any emails or files.
Advanced Usage
- "Packrat mentality": A mindset characterized by an inability to discard possessions.
- His packrat mentality makes it impossible to clear out the attic.
Variants and Related Words
- Pack rat: An alternative spelling of the word.
- Hoarding (n): The behavior of accumulating items to an excessive degree.
- Compulsive hoarding is a recognized psychological disorder.
Synonyms
- Magpie (n, figurative): A person who collects things, especially things of little value.
- Hoarder (n): A person who accumulates and stores things obsessively.
Related Idioms
- "Have a packrat instinct": To have a natural tendency to collect and save things.
- I seem to have a packrat instinct when it comes to souvenir keychains.
Noun
-
any of several bushy-tailed rodents of the genus Neotoma of western North America; hoards food and other objects
-
a collector of miscellaneous useless objects
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