porcupines

Thân thiện

A family enjoys porcupines for dinner.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A large rodent covered with long, sharp spines or quills: A porcupine is a mammal belonging to the families Erethizontidae (New World porcupines) or Hystricidae (Old World porcupines). Its most distinctive feature is its coat of sharp, stiff quills used for defense.
   • A dish consisting of meat patties rolled in rice and simmered in tomato sauce: In some culinary contexts, the term "porcupines" is used to describe a specific recipe where meatballs contain rice that protrudes during cooking, resembling quills.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Animal):
  • We saw a porcupine climbing a tree in the forest.
  • The porcupine's quills detach easily when touched by a predator.
• Noun (Dish):
  • My grandmother makes the best porcupines with a savory tomato sauce.
  • For dinner, we're having porcupines, which are basically meatballs with rice.

Advanced Usage

• "To be like a porcupine": Used metaphorically to describe a person who is prickly, defensive, or difficult to approach.
  • After the criticism, he was like a porcupine, pushing everyone away.
• Culinary Context: The dish name is an example of a playful, descriptive term in cooking, comparing the appearance of the rice-studded meatball to the animal.

Variants and Related Words

• Porcupinefish (n): A type of fish that inflates its body and erects spines when threatened, resembling a porcupine.
• Porcupine caribou (n): A herd of caribou (reindeer) named for their calving grounds in the Porcupine River region.

Synonyms

• Animal: Quill pig (archaic/regional), hedgehog (Note: Hedgehogs are a different, smaller spiny mammal).
• Dish: Rice-stuffed meatballs, porcupine meatballs.

Related Phrases

• "To stick out like a porcupine's quills": To be very obvious or prominent.
  • His uncombed hair stuck out like a porcupine's quills.
• "A porcupine's dilemma": A metaphor about the challenge of intimacy versus self-protection, referring to animals that need warmth but risk hurting each other with their spines.

Học thuật

Noun

1. meat patties rolled in rice and simmered in a tomato sauce

Từ đồng nghĩa

• porcupine ball