PORCUPINE


Meaning of PORCUPINE in English

transcription, транскрипция: [ ˈpȯr-kyə-ˌpīn ]

noun

( plural porcupines also porcupine )

Etymology: Middle English porke despyne, from Middle French porc espin, from Old Italian porcospino, from Latin porcus pig + spina spine, prickle

Date: 15th century

: any of various relatively large slow-moving chiefly herbivorous rodents having sharp erectile spines mingled with the hair and constituting an Old World terrestrial family (Hystricidae) and a New World chiefly arboreal family (Erethizontidae)

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate English vocabulary.      Энциклопедический словарь английского языка Merriam Webster.