Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Chiefly Southern US An opossum.
- noun Any of several nocturnal arboreal marsupials of the suborder Phalangeriformes, native to Australia and adjacent islands and introduced elsewhere.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun Same as
opossum . - To play possum; feign death.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Zoöl.), Colloq. U. S. An opossum.
- noun to feign ignorance, indifference or inattention, with the intent to deceive; to dissemble; -- in allusion to the habit of the opossum, which feigns death when attacked or alarmed.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun US An
opossum , a marsupial of the familyDidelphidae of the Americas. - noun Any of
marsupials in several families of the orderDiprotodontia of Australia and neighboring islands.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun nocturnal arboreal marsupial having a naked prehensile tail found from southern North America to northern South America
- noun small furry Australian arboreal marsupials having long usually prehensile tails
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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I think possum is correct in saying that the problem isn't that NASA can't estimate costs, its that the project managers will run three cost models and pick the one that they want, instead of going with the high one. (or at least justifying - with analysis - why the high model is wrong)
Lack of Discipline = Slaughter of the Innocents - NASA Watch 2008
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September 10, 2008 at 11:09 am 9. The word possum,in some parts of the universe,is actually the most horrible insult ever known.
Monorail Cat derails after - Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures of Cats - I Can Has Cheezburger? 2008
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It's a first person account of adopting a possum from a possum rescue organization.
Boing Boing: December 3, 2006 - December 9, 2006 Archives 2006
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The girls passed on along the road below, uninterested in chestnuts and "'possum" - grapes; but the boys following them ( 'Lige and some of his supporters) ran up to have a look.
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There is one other creature in the world which does this, and that is the long-fingered possum, which is found in New Guinea.
Last Chance to See Adams, Douglas, 1952- 1990
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The cartoon represented an old colored man who saw an opossum in a tree close to his house; he was so elated over the idea of possum and sweet potatoes that he climbed the tree.
From log cabin to the pulpit, or, fifteen years in slavery, b. 1848 1913
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The possum is a strange creature, having a pouch to shelter her young ones.
Colonial Children 1902
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The collective claims VicForests is illegally cutting down old trees in the area and threatening the habitat of the endangered Leadbeater's possum, which is one of Victoria's emblems.
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The opossum, colloquially known as a possum, is about the size of a domestic cat.
BBC - Ouch 2010
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A common misconception about the opossum is that it is the same animal as the possum, which is actually a completely different animal from the family
Gammerstang commented on the word possum
Western slang: Buddy
April 5, 2018