Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Either of two rodents of the genus Chinchilla that are native to the mountains of South America and are widely raised in captivity for their soft, pale gray fur.
  • noun The fur of either of these animals.
  • noun A thick twilled cloth of wool and cotton used for overcoats.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A small South American rodent quadruped of the genus Chinchilla, especially C. lanigera; a pika-squirrel.
  • noun Some related animal of the family Chinchillidæ: as, Cuvier's chinchilla (Lagidium cuvieri).
  • noun The typical genus of the family Chinchillidæ: synonymous with Eriomys.
  • noun The fur of these animals, which is used for tippets, muffs, linings to cloaks, pelisses, etc.
  • noun A thick heavy cloth for women's winter cloaks, with a long napped surface rolled into little tufts, in imitation of chinchilla fur.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Zoöl.) A small rodent (Chinchilla lanigera), of the size of a large squirrel, remarkable for its fine fur, which is very soft and of a pearly gray color. It is a native of Peru and Chili.
  • noun The fur of the chinchilla.
  • noun A heavy, long-napped, tufted woolen cloth.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A small, nocturnal rodent of the genus Chinchilla, native to the Andes, prized for its very soft fur and also often kept as a pet.
  • noun uncountable The fur of a chinchilla used for clothing.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a thick twilled fabric of wool and cotton
  • noun the expensive silvery grey fur of the chinchilla
  • noun small rodent with soft pearly grey fur; native to the Andes but bred in captivity for fur

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Spanish, probably of Aymara origin.]

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Examples

  • The word chinchilla would have occurred irresistibly to this observer from behind; he might also, if he were the father of a family, have had a fleeting vision of many autographed stubs in a check book.

    The Haunted Bookshop 1918

  • (Mariette’s last name has been turned invisible to protect the identity of the chinchilla that lives with her, as that chinchilla is a secret agent in the Dominican Republic Secret Engagement Xyloforce.) “You do know Mariette!”

    CYRIL MACK AND THE VERY COLD CUP OF TEA • by Kevin Shamel 2009

  • First thing I knew, I was dreaming you and I were being married, and you had brass buttons all over you, and I had the cloak all right, but it was a wedding-dress, and the chinchilla was a wormy sort of orange blossoms, and -- and I waked when the handle of the door turned and the

    In the Bishop's Carriage Miriam Michelson 1906

  • First thing I knew, I was dreaming you and I were being married, and you had brass buttons all over you, and I had the cloak all right, but it was a wedding-dress, and the chinchilla was a wormy sort of orange blossoms, and -- and I waked when the handle of the door turned and the Bishop got in.

    In The Bishop's Carriage. 1903

  • The chinchilla, which is the typical form of the third family, is known to all, especially ladies, from its delicate soft fur.

    Natural History of the Mammalia of India and Ceylon Robert Armitage Sterndale 1870

  • The chinchilla is a much more beautiful creature than the viscacha, and is a better-known animal, its soft and beautifully-marbled fur being an article of fashionable wear in the cities of Europe.

    The Hunters' Feast Conversations Around the Camp Fire Mayne Reid 1850

  • Its unusual blonde to near white colouring is the result of a recessive gene, known as chinchilla or colour inhibitor.

    News24 2008

  • The chinchilla was a showstopper — and “a massive mistake,” Lucas writes.

    Druglord ‘gangster’ fashion victim « 2010

  • There are pygmy goats, minks, chinchilla, parrots, squirrels, all tended by Colleen and an army of volunteers.

    Can a Howard woman keep a bunch of monkeys in her house? 2011

  • There are pygmy goats, minks, chinchilla, parrots, squirrels, all tended by Colleen and an army of volunteers.

    Can a Howard woman keep a bunch of monkeys in her house? 2011

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