mongoose

Everyday

A mongoose is a small, fast, furry animal with a long body and tail, from Africa and Asia, famous for fighting and killing snakes, including cobras. tree →

In the lessons

In stories, the most famous mongoose is Rikki-Tikki-Tavi from Rudyard Kipling's «The Jungle Book», who protects a family from cobras. In science lessons, mongooses are quick and have some resistance to snake venom. Meerkats are a kind of mongoose. When people brought mongooses to islands like Hawaii to kill rats, they also killed native birds — a lesson about invasive species. Phrases: «a band of mongooses».

Examples

• The mongoose darted at the cobra and won the fight. tree →
• Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is a brave mongoose in Kipling's story. tree →
• Meerkats belong to the mongoose family. tree →
• Mongooses brought to Hawaii ate the eggs of rare birds. tree →
• A mongoose is quick enough to dodge a snake's strike. tree →
• A group of mongooses is called a band. tree →
• Our mongoose is killing a snake.” And Rikki-tikki heard a scream from Teddy’s mother. tree →

Note

Plural «mongooses» (not «mongeese»): the word has nothing to do with «goose»; it comes from an Indian language (Marathi «mungūs»).