prairie dog

Thân thiện

A prairie dog stands on its hind legs near its burrow.

Definition

Noun 1. A burrowing rodent of North American grasslands: A prairie dog is a type of ground squirrel native to the grasslands (prairies) of North America. It is known for living in large, social colonies within extensive underground burrow systems and for making a distinctive call that sounds like a bark.

Examples

• The prairie dog stood on its hind legs to watch for predators.
• We saw a large colony of prairie dogs near the visitor center.
• The characteristic bark of the prairie dog is a warning signal to others in the colony.

Advanced Usage

• "Prairie dog town": This term is often used to describe a large, concentrated network of prairie dog burrows, emphasizing the complex, community-like structure of their habitat.
  • The researchers mapped the entire prairie dog town, which covered several acres.

Variants and Related Words

• Cynomys: This is the scientific genus name for prairie dogs.
• Ground squirrel: Prairie dogs are a type of ground squirrel. This is a broader category of rodents to which they belong.
• Rodent: This is the broader biological order (Rodentia) that includes prairie dogs, mice, rats, beavers, and squirrels.

Synonyms

• Burrowing rodent: A descriptive synonym highlighting its key behavior and classification.
• (Regional/Historical) Prairie marmot: An older or less common name.

Related Phrases & Idioms

• To prairie-dog (informal, verb): This is a modern, informal slang term meaning to pop one's head up above the partitions in a cubicle office to look around, mimicking the behavior of the animal.
  • I prairie-dogged to see who was talking in the next aisle.

Học thuật

Noun

1. any of several rodents of North American prairies living in large complex burrows having a barking cry

Từ đồng nghĩa

• prairie marmot