meerkat

meerkat
noun Etymology: Afrikaans, from Dutch, a kind of monkey, from Middle Dutch meercatte monkey, from meer sea + catte cat Date: 1801 any of several African mongooses; especially a burrowing highly social primarily insectivorous mammal (Suricata suricatta) of southern Africa that is chiefly grayish with faint black markings and lives in usually large colonies

New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.

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  • Meerkat — Meer kat (m[=e]r k[a^]t), n. [D.] (Zo[ o]l.) A South African carnivore ({Suricata suricata}, formerly {Cynictis penicillata}), allied to the ichneumons, having a lemurlike face and only four toes; called also {yellow mongoose} and {suricate}.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • meerkat — (n.) late 15c., monkey, from Du. meerkat monkey (related to O.H.G. mericazza), apparently from meer lake + kat cat. But Cf. Hindi markat, Skt. markata ape, which might serve as a source of a Teutonic folk etymology, even though the word was in… …   Etymology dictionary

  • meerkat — ► NOUN ▪ a small southern African mongoose. ORIGIN Dutch, sea cat : the name originally applied to a kind of monkey, perhaps with the notion from overseas …   English terms dictionary

  • meerkat — [mir′kat΄, mēr′kat΄] n. [Afrik < Du, name of type of monkey, lit., sea cat] any of various mongooses of SW Africa, esp. a small, grayish one (Suricata suricatta) that lives in colonies underground …   English World dictionary

  • Meerkat — This article is about the mammal. For other uses, see Meerkat (disambiguation). Meerkats redirects here. For the 2008 British film, see The Meerkats. Lake cat redirects here. It is not to be confused with Cat Lake. Meerkat …   Wikipedia

  • MeerKAT — KAT 7 Organization NRF Department of Science and Technology[1] SKA South Africa Project Location Northern Cape, South Africa Coordinates …   Wikipedia

  • meerkat — /mear kat/, n. suricate. [D: lit., monkey, appar. = meer see (see MERE2) + kat CAT] * * * or suricate colonial species (Suricata suricatta) of the mongoose family (Herpestidae). It is a burrowing carnivore found in southwestern Africa that… …   Universalium

  • meerkat — surikata statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas rūšis atitikmenys: lot. Suricata suricata angl. grey meerkat; meerkat; slender tailed meerkat; suricate vok. Erdmännchen; Surikate rus. суриката pranc. suricate ryšiai: platesnis… …   Žinduolių pavadinimų žodynas

  • meerkat — mierkat mierkat n. (Zool.) A South African mongooselike viverrine ({Suricata suricata}) having a lemurlike face and only four toes; called also {suricate}. [Also spelled {meerkat}.] Syn: meerkat. [WordNet 1.5] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • meerkat — UK [ˈmɪə(r)ˌkæt] / US [ˈmɪrˌkæt] noun [countable] Word forms meerkat : singular meerkat plural meerkats a small South African animal that has grey fur with black marks …   English dictionary

  • meerkat — [ mɪəkat] noun a small southern African mongoose. [Suricata suricatta (grey meerkat) and other species.] Origin C18: from S. Afr. Du., from Du., appar. from meer sea + kat cat …   English new terms dictionary

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