[rab.bit] n, pl rabbit or rabbits often attrib [ME rabet, prob. fr. MF dial. (Walloon) robett, fr. MD robe] (14c) 1: any of a family (Leporidae) of long-eared short-tailed lagomorph mammals with long hind legs: a: any of various lagomorphs that are born naked, blind, and helpless, that are sometimes gregarious, and that include esp. the cottontails of the New World and a small Old World mammal (Oryctolagus cuniculus) that is the source of various domestic breeds b: hare
2: the pelt of a rabbit
3: welsh rabbit
4. a: a figure of a rabbit sped mechanically along the edge of a dog track as an object of pursuit b: a runner in a long-distance race who sets a fast pace for the field in the first part of the race -- rab.bity adj
[2]rabbit vi (1852): to hunt rabbits -- rab.bit.er n