Meaning of "porcupine" in the English dictionary

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD PORCUPINE

Porc despyne pig with spines, from Old French porc espin.

Etymology is the study of the origin of words and their changes in structure and significance.

PRONUNCIATION OF PORCUPINE

porcupine  [ˈpɔːkjʊˌpaɪn]

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF PORCUPINE

Porcupine is a noun.

A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

WHAT DOES PORCUPINE MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Porcupine

Porcupines are rodents with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that defend them from predators. They are indigenous to the Americas, Southern Asia, Europe, and Africa. Porcupines are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and the beaver. Most porcupines are about 25–36 in long, with an 8–10 in long tail. Weighing 12–35 lb, they are rounded, large and slow. Porcupines come in various shades of brown, gray, and the unusual white. Porcupines' spiny protection resembles that of the unrelated erinaceomorph hedgehogs and monotreme echidnas. The common porcupine is a herbivore. It eats leaves, herbs, twigs and green plants like clover and in the winter it may eat bark. The North American porcupine often climbs trees to find food. The African porcupine is not a climber and forages on the ground. It is mostly nocturnal, but will sometimes forage for food in the day. Porcupines have become a pest in Kenya and are eaten as a delicacy. A male porcupine urinates on a female porcupine prior to mating, spraying the urine at high velocity. The name porcupine comes from Middle French porc espin.

Definition of porcupine in the English dictionary

The definition of porcupine in the dictionary is any of various large hystricomorph rodents of the families Hystricidae, of Africa, Indonesia, S Europe, and S Asia, and Erethizontidae, of the New World. All species have a body covering of protective spines or quills.

TRANSLATION OF PORCUPINE

Find out the translation of porcupine to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.

The translations of porcupine from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «porcupine» in English.

• Translator English - Chinese: 豪猪
• Translator English - Spanish: puercoespín
• English: porcupine
• Translator English - Hindi: साही
• Translator English - Arabic: النيص
• Translator English - Russian: дикобраз
• Translator English - Portuguese: porco-espinho
• Translator English - Bengali: শজারু
• Translator English - French: porc-épic
• Translator English - Malay: Landak
• Translator English - German: Stachelschwein
• Translator English - Japanese: ヤマアラシ
• Translator English - Korean: 고슴도치
• Translator English - Javanese: Porcupine
• Translator English - Vietnamese: con nhím
• Translator English - Tamil: முள்ளம்பன்றி
• Translator English - Marathi: सावली
• Translator English - Turkish: kirpi
• Translator English - Italian: porcospino
• Translator English - Polish: jeżozwierz
• Translator English - Ukrainian: дикобраз
• Translator English - Romanian: porc spinos
• Translator English - Greek: σκαντζόχοιρο
• Translator English - Afrikaans: ystervark
• Translator English - Swedish: piggsvin
• Translator English - Norwegian: pinnsvin

2 QUOTES WITH «PORCUPINE»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word porcupine.

1

Jonathan Dimbleby

I don't love the media. I'm part of it, but you can't love a porcupine.

2

Charlotte Rampling

I remember my father saying to me once, 'I finally know how to describe you, Charlotte. You're prickly.' And he was right - prickly is a very good description. If I had to be an animal, I'd probably be a porcupine.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «PORCUPINE»

Discover the use of porcupine in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to porcupine and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.

How Do You Hug a Porcupine?

A child figures out the best way to hug a porcupine as he watches his friends hug other animals.

Laurie Isop, 2011

A Porcupine Named Fluffy

He's a porcupine who wishes he had another name. After Fluffy tries desperately to become more like his name, he makes an unlikely friend who changes his way of thinking. “A sweet story with joyful exuberance.” —Publz's/aers VVee/ely ...

Helen Lester, 2013

Reflections on the Death of a Porcupine and Other Essays

This text contains what Lawrence himself called philosophical essays written in the decade 1915-1925. The essays range from short pieces like Love and Life to the lengthy Education of the people.

D. H. Lawrence, Michael Herbert, 1988

Porcupine

When her father is killed in the war in Afghanistan and the family moves into the home of their great-grandmother in a distant prairie town, Jacqueline realizes that she must become head of the family to provide her younger siblings with ...

Meg Tilly, 2007

Memoirs of a Porcupine

When Kibandi, a boy living in a Congolese village, reaches the age of eleven, his father takes him out into the night, and forces him to drink a vile liquid from a jar which has been hidden for years in the earth. This is his initiation.

Alain Mabanckou, 2011

How to Hug a Porcupine: Negotiating the Prickly Points of ...

Find out how other parents survived nightmarish tween behavior--and still raised great kids Break the “nagging cycle,” give your kids responsibilities, and get results Talk about sex, drugs, and alcohol so your kid will listen Discover ...

Julie Ross, 2008

What to Say to a Porcupine: 20 Humorous Tales That Get to ...

Each story is followed by a short discussion, illuminating topics from customer relationships to how to motivate a service team. Fun, quick, and constructive, this is a guide for anyone involved in customer service.

Richard S. GALLAGHER, 2008

Ben and the Porcupine

"A nicely crafted realistic story, brought to life through Donald Carrick's astute, controlled watercolors in forest green and gold hues." -- Booklist

Carol Carrick, 1985

Peter Porcupine in America: Pamphlets on Republicanism and ...

In this book David A. Wilson brings together seven of Cobbett's major American pamphlets with extracts from his newspaper writing and provides an introduction that locates him in the political and social context of his time.

William Cobbett, David A. Wilson, 1994

Little Porcupine's Christmas

Now in paperback--the heartwarming holiday tale of Little Porcupine, who proves that everyone can be a star. Full color.

Joseph Slate, 2003

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «PORCUPINE»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term porcupine is used in the context of the following news items.

Match Report: Asante Kotoko 1-0 AshantiGold- Porcupine Warriors …

The Porcupine Warriors lined up with their top scorer Amed Toure likewise AshGold who missed the services of striker Yakubu Mohammed- ... «Ghanasoccernet.com, Jul 15»

Animal Control Officer Frees Porcupine From Soccer Net In Princeton

The Rutland Regional Animal Control officer posted on Friday that she freed a young porcupine that had become entangled on Thompson ... «CBS Local, Jul 15»

Luna Moth: porcupine Quilled Birch Bark Box, by...

Inserting porcupine quills tightly side by side into birch bark and fashioning boxes proved a challenge, but Clement finished the box and ... «www.muskokaregion.com/, Jul 15»

HISTORY: Porcupine area not immune to Roaring '20s

TIMMINS - Just a few bits and bats from the year 1922 – a pretty good year to be living in the Porcupine! A big mining deal went down early in ... «Timmins Press, Jul 15»

We Welcome Our Porcupine Overlord

This is the question that your humble correspondent asked when he first saw the smiling porcupine's effigy atop a bus stop at Yonge and ... «Torontoist, Jul 15»

SD Man Indicted On Sexual Abuse Charges

Federal court records show Jesse Miller, of Porcupine, is scheduled to appear Friday in the U.S. District Court in Rapid City on three counts of ... «KDLT News, Jul 15»

Owls, snakes and a porcupine, oh my! NEPA Audubon Society hosts …

HAWLEY — Owls, a porcupine and deadly snakes were all in attendance at the 30th annual Northeast Pennsylvania Audubon Society Arts and ... «Scranton Times-Tribune, Jul 15»

Fun and Sun at Summerfest

SARAH MOORE/ The Daily Press The giant, inflatable dragon was a big hit at this weekend's Summerfest in South Porcupine. Pictured are Gia ... «Timmins Press, Jul 15»

Homeowners find baby porcupine in bathroom

It seems the porcupine picked a perfect place to chill out. Matson said several of its droppings were found in the bathroom, though he avoided ... «The Union Leader, Jul 15»

Diablo in the southern Porcupine detail

Diablo Ridge is in frontier exploration license (FEL) 2/14 in the southern Porcupine Basin, offshore southwest Ireland. FEL 2/14 is in c.2500m ... «OE Digital, Jul 15»