gerbil

English

Alternative forms

• gerble (verb)

Etymology

French gerbille, from Latin gerbo, from Arabic يربوع (yarbūʕ, “jerboa”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈdʒɚ.bəl/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(r)bəl

Noun

gerbil (plural gerbils)

Wikipedia

1. (zoology) One of several species of small, jumping, murine rodents, of the genus Gerbillus. In their leaping powers they resemble the jerboa. They inhabit Africa, India, and Southern Europe.

Translations

small rodent

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 沙鼠 (cmn) (shāshǔ)

• Dutch: gerbil (nl) m, springmuis (nl) f renmuis (nl) f, woestijnrat (nl) f
• Faroese: oyðimørkaíkorn (fo) n
• Finnish: gerbilli (fi)
• French: gerbille (fr) f
• Galician: xerbo (gl) m
• Georgian: მექვიშიები (ka) (mek‘višiebi)
• German: Rennmaus (de) f, Wüstenrennmaus (de) f, mongolische Rennmaus (de) f

• Italian: gerbillo (it) m, ratto della sabbia (it) m
• Low German: rennmüüs (nds)
• Navajo: hóółtseiigi naʼatsʼǫǫsí
• Polish: myszoskoczek (pl) m, gerbil (pl) m, suwak (pl) m
• Portuguese: gerbilo (pt) m, rato-do-deserto (pt) m
• Romanian: gerbil (ro) m
• Russian: песчанка (ru) (pesčánka) f
• Spanish: gerbillo (es) m
• Vietnamese: chuột nhảy (vi)

Verb

Wikipedia

gerbil (third-person singular simple present gerbils, present participle gerbilling or gerbiling, simple past and past participle gerbilled or gerbiled)

1. To rotate inside a monowheel or similar apparatus due to sudden acceleration or braking.
2. (slang) To insert a small animal into the rectum of a person.

See also

• guinea pig
• hamster
• mouse
• rat