beaver
/ˈbivɚ/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.61 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A semiaquatic rodent of the genus Castor, having a wide, flat tail and webbed feet, native to the Northern Hemisphere.
Countable
noun
A hat, of various shapes, made from a felted beaver fur (or later of silk), fashionable in Europe between 1550 and 1850.
Countable
noun
Beaver pelts as an article of exchange or as a standard of value.
Canadian usage; American usage; Countable; Uncountable
noun
Beaver cloth, a heavy felted woollen cloth, used chiefly for making overcoats.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "Then, for the safeguard of his personage, He did appoint a warlike equipage Of foreign beasts, not in the forest bred, But part by land and part by water fed; For tyranny is with strange aid supported. Then unto him all monstrous beasts resorted Bred of two kinds, as Griffons, Minotaurs, Crocodiles, Dragons, Beavers, and Centaurs: With those himself he strengthened mightily, That fear he need no force of enemy."
- "a broad beaver slouched over his eyes"
- "The woman's hair and woman's beaver had both been jerked off, exposing the cropped head of a man..."
- "The beards were false ones. I could see the elastic going over their ears. In other words, I had fallen among a band of criminals who were not wilful beavers, but had merely assumed the fungus for purposes of disguise."
- "Finally it came on. It was a beauty, a beaver flick made in the late 1970s. It was called Big Black Leather Splits."
- "Between you and me, uh, she might have been fifteen, but when you get that little red beaver right up there in front of you, I don’t think it's crazy at all and I don’t think you do either."
Etymology
From Middle English bever, from Old English befer, from Proto-West Germanic *bebru, from Proto-Germanic *bebruz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰébʰrus (“beaver”). Cognate with West Frisian bever, Dutch bever, French bièvre, German Biber, dialectal Swedish bjur. Non-Germanic cognates include Welsh befer, Latin fiber, Lithuanian bẽbras, Russian бобр (bobr), Avestan 𐬠𐬀𐬎𐬎𐬭𐬀 (bauura), and Sanskrit बभ्रु (bábhru, “mongoose; ichneumon”). Slang use to refer to a woman evolved from use to refer to pubic hair, which evolved from use to refer to beards, which evolved from use to refer to the furry animal or its fur.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈbivɚ/
- British English: /ˈbiːvə/