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spermophile. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
spermophile, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
spermophile in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
From Spermophilus from σπέρμα (spérma, “seed”) + φιλέω (philéō, “love”), hence, "seed-lover". This genus formerly included most of the terrestrial squirrels, but all of the North American species have been split off into separate genera.
Pronunciation
Noun
spermophile (plural spermophiles)
- A terrestrial burrowing rodent; ground squirrel.
1920, Thornton W. Burgess, “Striped Chipmunk and his Cousins”, in The Burgess Animal Book for Children:Your cousin, Seek Seek the Spermophile, sometimes called Gopher Squirrel, who lives on the open plains of the West where there are no rocks or stones. He likes best the flat, open country. He is called Spermophile because that means seed-eater, and he lives largely on seeds, especially on grain.
Synonyms
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French
Pronunciation
Noun
spermophile m (plural spermophiles)
- spermophile
Derived terms
Further reading