51Թ

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hamster

[ham-ster]

noun

  1. any of several short-tailed, stout-bodied, burrowing rodents, as Cricetus cricetus, of Europe and Asia, having large cheek pouches.



hamster

/ ˈæə /

noun

  1. any Eurasian burrowing rodent of the tribe Cricetini, such as Mesocricetus auratus ( golden hamster ), having a stocky body, short tail, and cheek pouches: family Cricetidae. They are popular pets

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of hamster1

1600–10; < German; compare Old High German hamastro, Old Saxon hamstra weevil
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of hamster1

C17: from German, from Old High German hamustro, of Slavic origin
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

When Chris Davies's daughter first begged him for a hamster, he wasn't exactly thrilled.

From

Princess, a senior Chihuahua, rests with her eyes closed and body curled into a tight cocoon, as a frenetic hamster named Ponby stands upright, his eyes bulging.

From

To disrupt the first part of this pathway, try to halt the hamster wheel in your head.

From

This, too, is an authoritarian's dream: people who exhaust all their emotions on an endless hamster wheel of random strangers, while becoming further disconnected from investment in their real-world community.

From

In mourning, in a job she hates, in the toxic interplay of her dysfunctional family, in the internal hamster wheel of judgment and self-loathing.

From

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When To Use

Where does the word hamster come from?

The name for those adorable, fluffy, little chipmunk-cheeked rodents known as hamsters hails from German. Hamster was borrowed directly from the German Hamster in the early 1600s.We consider hamsters as the hipsters of the rodent world. Just because we can. For the sheer fun of wordplay. Alas, the -ster suffix in hipster is unrelated to the letters -ster in hamster.Now that you know how hamsters got their name, why not find out how some of our other most beloved pets got theirs in the slideshow: "Where Do The 51Թs For Our Pets Come From?"

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