Definition of Prairie dog

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

Exact synonyms: Prairie Marmot
Generic synonyms: Gnawer, Rodent
Group relationships: Cynomys, Genus Cynomys
Specialized synonyms: Blacktail Prairie Dog, Cynomys Ludovicianus, Cynomys Gunnisoni, Whitetail Prairie Dog

Definition of Prairie dog

1. Noun. A small, stout-bodied burrowing rodent with shallow cheek pouches, native to North America and Central America. ¹

2. Verb. (intransitive transitive) To pop up from a hole or similar in a manner that resembles the way a prairie dog pops his head up from his burrow. ¹

3. Verb. (slang euphemistic) To struggle to hold back an involuntary bowel movement. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Lexicographical Neighbors of Prairie Dog

prairie
prairie-dog
prairie-dogging
prairie-doggings
prairie anemone
prairie aster
prairie berry
prairie bird's-foot trefoil
prairie chicken
prairie clover
prairie clovers
prairie coneflower
prairie crab
prairie dock
prairie dog
prairie dogged
prairie dogging
prairie doggings
prairie dogs
prairie fowl
prairie fox
prairie gentian
prairie golden aster
prairie gourd
prairie gourd vine
prairie grouse
prairie lotus
prairie mallow

Literary usage of Prairie dog

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. St. Nicholas by Mary Mapes Dodge (1906)
"A long time ago, dey was a prairie-dog what was left a widder, ... Prairie- Dog dat de onliest way for her to git along was to keep boarders. ..."

2. The American Naturalist by American Society of Naturalists, Essex Institute (1878)
"THE prairie dog, OWL AND RATTLESNAKE. BY SW WILLISTON. TTERY singular and amusing stories have been, and still are, * accepted by many of the amicable ..."

3. An American Glossary by Richard Hopwood Thornton (1912)
"prairie dog—contd. 1814 I happened on a village of barking squirrels or ... 1823 The prairie dog villages we had observed to become more frequent and more ..."

4. Journal of an Exploring Tour Beyond the Rocky Mountains: Under the Direction by Samuel Parker (1838)
"... seen—Prairie horse-fly—forks of the Platta—want of wood—swiftness of Antelopes—climate—thousands of buffalo— Badgers—prairie dog—interesting bluffs—old ..."

5. The Americana: A Universal Reference Library, Comprising the Arts and ...edited by Frederick Converse Beach, George Edwin Rines edited by Frederick Converse Beach, George Edwin Rines (1912)
"prairie dog, a name given to either of the two species of marmot-like rodents of the western plains of the genus Cynomys, but especially to C. ..."

6. Traditions of the Skidi Pawnee by George Amos Dorsey (1904)
"tept, and as they increased they were spotted. So the people had many spotted ponies,1* 82. THE BOY WHO BECAME A PRAIRIE-DOG.*» A scolded boy lives with ..."

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