Stoat
/stoʊt/noun
A small, slender carnivorous mammal of the weasel family, especially when in its brown summer coat.
Did you know?The stoat’s famous winter coat, called ermine, became a medieval status symbol, so a fierce little hunter ended up clothed in the language of kings and judges.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*stautaz
“a stout or poking animal; the exact original sense is uncertain”
Old English
OE
stotta
“a stoat or weasel-like animal”
Middle English
ME
stote
“a stoat”
15th–16th Century
English
stoat
“the small weasel-like mammal now known by that name”
Modern English
English
stoat
“a small carnivorous mammal of the weasel family”