water rat
noun
Forms water rats waterrat water-rat
- noun (US) Any of various aquatic or semi-aquatic rodents from Florida and southern Georgia, especially Neofiber alleni; the muskrat.
- noun (Australia) A water mouse, especially, the rakali, Hydromys chrysogaster.
- noun (informal) A European water vole (Arvicola amphibius, formerly Arvicola terrestris).
- noun (US, slang) A petty thief or waterfront ruffian.
- noun (slang) A person fond of water sports.
- noun (slang, Australia) A member of the water police.
Synonyms
Etymology
From water + rat. Compare Saterland Frisian Woaterrotte, West Frisian wetterrôt, Dutch waterrat, German Low German Waterrötte, Waterrött, German Wasserratte, Danish vandrotte, Swedish vattenråtta, Icelandic vatnsrotta.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “water rat”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details