mongoose

[ mong-goos, mon- ]

noun

, plural mon·goos·es.

1. a slender, ferretlike carnivore, Herpestes edwardsi, of India, that feeds on rodents, birds, and eggs, noted especially for its ability to kill cobras and other venomous snakes.
2. any of several other animals of this genus or related genera.

mongoose

/ ˈmɒŋˌɡuːs /

noun

1. any small predatory viverrine mammal of the genus Herpestes and related genera, occurring in Africa and from S Europe to SE Asia, typically having a long tail and brindled coat

Word History and Origins

Origin of mongoose¹

1690–1700; < Marathi mangūs, variant of muṅgūs

Word History and Origins

Origin of mongoose¹

C17: from Marathi mangūs, of Dravidian origin

Example Sentences

On a mission that can only be described as either unflinchingly courageous or lethally naïve, the team will rendezvous with an expert field team of brave Ugandan scientists currently at the front of the seemingly unstoppable mongoose madness.

From Salon

From a clandestine perch, the academics will conduct mongoose reconnaissance to analyze the desert hellcats’ rampage tactics at a safe remove, trying to understand how the forces of evolution can culminate to create one particular species with a taste for actual warfare and extreme violence.

From Salon

Thankfully, the mongoose rampage isn’t targeting humans, though they aren’t above ground-based kitchen invasions when pushed into an environmental threat, and their toxic bites can quickly become lethal.

From Salon

He’s the head of Exeter’s long-term Banded Mongoose Research Project and his previous attempts to understand bloodthirsty mongoose warfare led him to Uganda before, where he witnessed an extremist mongoose beheading in the wild.

From Salon

He lured one mongoose mob out of its hideout by smearing an enemy gang’s feces on the property then blasting a rival gang’s fight-taunts out of a Bluetooth speaker.

From Salon