chipmunk

[ chip-muhngk ]

noun

1. any of several small, striped, terrestrial squirrels of the genera Tamias, of North America, and Eutamia, of Asia and North America, especially T. striatus, of eastern North America.

chipmunk

/ ˈtʃɪpˌmʌŋk /

noun

1. any burrowing sciurine rodent of the genera Tamias of E North America and Eutamias of W North America and Asia, typically having black-striped yellowish fur and cheek pouches for storing food

Word History and Origins

Origin of chipmunk¹

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35; assimilated variant of earlier chitmunk, apparently from Ojibwe ačitamo·nʔ “red squirrel,” equivalent to ačit- “headfirst, face-down” + derivational elements; so called from the squirrel's manner of descending trees

Word History and Origins

Origin of chipmunk¹

C19: of Algonquian origin; compare Ojibwa atchitamon squirrel, literally: headfirst, referring to its method of descent from trees

Example Sentences

“Maybe it was just a baby rat. Maybe it was a lost chipmunk,” Mom is saying.

From Literature

She turns and begins talking to Erik about how the baby rat or chipmunk is probably still somewhere in the market, and it’s really fast.

From Literature

"For example, after training the model to recognize a photo of a chipmunk or squirrel, the computer starts to see if these patterns are present in a similar image. And given those patterns, it will predict either chipmunk, or squirrel, or something else," he says.

From BBC

Scientists have also recorded it in a pet chipmunk in Germany and in healthy captive parrots.

From National Geographic

A pig chilling in mud, a hiker speaking to a chipmunk and a Grammy winner posing nude.

From Los Angeles Times