armadillo

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: ar=ma=dil=lo

CIDE DICTIONARY

armadillo, n. [Sp. armadillo, dim. of armado armed, p. p. of armar to arm. So called from being armed with a bony shell.].

 Any edentate animal if the family Dasypidæ, peculiar to America. The body and head are incased in an armor composed of small bony plates. The armadillos burrow in the earth, seldom going abroad except at night. When attacked, they curl up into a ball, presenting the armor on all sides. Their flesh is good food. There are several species, one of which (the peba) is found as far north as Texas. See Peba, Poyou, Tatouay.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

armadillo, n. (pl. -os) any nocturnal insect-eating mammal of the family Dasypodidae, native to Central and S. America, with large claws for digging and a body covered in bony plates, often rolling itself into a ball when threatened.

Etymology

Sp. dimin. of armado armed man f. L armatus past part. of armare ARM(2)

THESAURUS

armadillo

Angora goat, Arctic fox, Belgian hare, Caffre cat, Indian buffalo, Kodiak bear, Virginia deer, aardvark, aardwolf, alpaca, anteater, antelope, antelope chipmunk, aoudad, apar, ass, aurochs, badger, bandicoot, bassarisk, bat, bear, beaver, bettong, binturong, bison, black bear, black buck, black cat, black fox, black sheep, blue fox, bobcat, brown bear, brush deer, brush wolf, buffalo, buffalo wolf, burro, burro deer, cachalot, camel, camelopard, capybara, carabao, caribou, carpincho, cat, cat-a-mountain, catamount, cattalo, cavy, chamois, cheetah, chevrotain, chinchilla, chipmunk, cinnamon bear, coon, coon cat, cotton mouse, cotton rat, cougar, cow, coyote, coypu, deer, deer tiger, dingo, dog, donkey, dormouse, dromedary, echidna, eland, elephant, elk, ermine, eyra, fallow deer, ferret, field mouse, fisher, fitch, flying phalanger, foumart, fox, fox squirrel, gazelle, gemsbok, genet, giraffe, glutton, gnu, gnu goat, goat, goat antelope, gopher, grizzly bear, ground squirrel, groundhog, guanaco, guinea pig, hamster, hare, harnessed antelope, hartebeest, hedgehog, hippopotamus, hog, horse, hyena, hyrax, ibex, jackal, jackass, jackrabbit, jaguar, jaguarundi, jerboa, jerboa kangaroo, kaama, kangaroo, kangaroo mouse, kangaroo rat, karakul, kinkajou, kit fox, koala, lapin, lemming, leopard, leopard cat, lion, llama, lynx, mammoth, mara, marmot, marten, mastodon, meerkat, mink, mole, mongoose, moose, mouflon, mountain goat, mountain lion, mountain sheep, mouse, mule, mule deer, muntjac, musk deer, musk hog, musk-ox, muskrat, musquash, nilgai, nutria, ocelot, okapi, onager, oont, opossum, otter, ounce, ox, pack rat, painter, panda, pangolin, panther, peccary, peludo, phalanger, pig, pine mouse, platypus, pocket gopher, pocket mouse, pocket rat, polar bear, polar fox, polecat, porcupine, possum, pouched rat, poyou, prairie dog, prairie wolf, pronghorn, puma, rabbit, raccoon, rat, red deer, red squirrel, reindeer, rhinoceros, roe, roe deer, roebuck, sable, serval, sheep, shrew, shrew mole, sika, silver fox, skunk, sloth, snowshoe rabbit, springbok, squirrel, stoat, suslik, swamp rabbit, swine, takin, tamandua, tamarin, tapir, tarpan, tatou, tatou peba, tatouay, tiger, tiger cat, timber wolf, tree shrew, urus, vole, wallaby, warthog, water buffalo, waterbuck, weasel, wharf rat, whistler, white fox, wild ass, wild boar, wild goat, wild ox, wildcat, wildebeest, wolf, wolverine, wombat, wood rat, woodchuck, woolly mammoth, yak, zebra, zebu, zoril