Squirrel

Squirrel

Noun · /ˈskwɪrəl/ · a small agile rodent known for hoarding nuts; also a verb meaning to store something away

Definition

A squirrel is a small, agile rodent with a bushy tail, found across forests and urban parks on nearly every continent. As a verb, to squirrel — or squirrel away — means to store something carefully for future use. You squirrel away savings, squirrel away useful documents, squirrel away time. The word bridges the literal world of the animal and a vivid human behaviour: the habit of setting things aside quietly, out of sight, for a rainy day. Both senses share the same core image of careful, private accumulation.

Origin

Squirrel comes from Old French escurel, derived from Latin sciurus, which itself comes from Greek skiouros — a compound of skia meaning shadow and oura meaning tail. The animal is literally the shadow-tail, named for the distinctive bushy tail that arches over its back like a canopy of shade. The word entered Middle English in the fourteenth century. Its verb use — to squirrel away — developed naturally from the animal's famous habit of burying and hoarding food for winter, and has been in figurative use since at least the nineteenth century.