ferret

Everyday

1. A small, long, thin furry animal related to the weasel, kept as a pet or once used to chase rabbits out of their holes. tree →
2. (verb) To ferret around or about is to search busily for something. tree →
3. To ferret out is to find something out by careful searching. tree →

In the lessons

In nature topics, ferrets are playful pets that sleep a lot. In history and countryside stories, people used ferrets to hunt rabbits. In everyday talk, ferret about in a drawer means rummage. Phrases: ferret around, ferret out the truth.

Examples

• Our neighbour has two pet ferrets. tree →
• The ferret squeezed into the rabbit hole. tree →
• Ferrets sleep for many hours a day. tree →
• She ferreted around in her bag for her keys. tree →
• The detective ferreted out the truth. tree →
• A baby ferret is called a kit. tree →
• Let a woman alone, in the meantime, for ferreting or wheedling a secret out of her good man, when she wishes. tree →

Note

Regular verb: ferreted. In New Zealand, ferrets are a pest that kills native birds, and keeping them as pets is not allowed.

In Jewish tradition

The word is used for an unclean animal in the old translation, probably a wild creature of ruins; the exact animal is uncertain.

Interpretation. Isaiah pictures Babylon as a ruin where only wild animals live. Tradition reads this as a sign of total desolation after God's judgment.

Examples

• But wild-cats shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of ferrets; and ostriches shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. (Prophets ISA.13.21, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Regular verb: ferreted. In New Zealand, ferrets are a pest that kills native birds, and keeping them as pets is not allowed.