What does "rabbit" mean?
A mammal of most genera of the family Leporidae, with long ears, long hind legs and a short, fluffy tail.
Rabbit
/ˈɹæbɪt/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A mammal of most genera of the family Leporidae, with long ears, long hind legs and a short, fluffy tail.
- Grammar: rabbit is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: cony, bunny, coney, animal.
- Useful contrasts: amble, be concise, bravery.
- Usage evidence: "What's the matter?" asked the little white rabbit.
How to use "rabbit"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "rabbit" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "rabbit" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "rabbit" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "rabbit" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "rabbit" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "cony" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "rabbit", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A mammal of most genera of the family Leporidae, with long ears, long hind legs and a short, fluffy tail. countable, uncountable
"The pioneers survived by eating the small game they could get: rabbits, squirrels and occasionally a raccoon."
- 2 any of various burrowing animals of the family Leporidae having long ears and short tails; some domesticated and raised for pets or food wordnet
- 3 The meat from this animal. uncountable
"She was cooking rabbit stew for dinner."
- 4 flesh of any of various rabbits or hares (wild or domesticated) eaten as food wordnet
- 5 The fur of a rabbit typically used to imitate another animal's fur. uncountable
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 the fur of a rabbit wordnet
- 7 A runner in a distance race whose goal is mainly to set the pace, either to tire a specific rival so that a teammate can win or to help another break a record; a pacesetter. countable, uncountable
- 8 A very poor batsman, selected as a bowler or wicket-keeper. countable, uncountable
- 9 A batsman who is frequently dismissed by the same bowler (said to be that player's rabbit). countable, uncountable
"Glenn McGrath dismissed Michael Atherton a record 19 times; hence Atherton is McGrath's rabbit."
- 10 A large element at the beginning of a list of items to be bubble sorted, and thus tending to be quickly swapped into its correct position. Compare turtle. countable, uncountable
- 11 Rarebit; Welsh rabbit or a similar dish: melted cheese served atop toast. countable, uncountable
"The cheese mixture may be served with toast on the side or poured on top of toast and grilled until golden brown and bubbling. Other variations include Buck rabbit, a Welsh rabbit with a poached egg on top, and Yorkshire rabbit with bacon ..."
- 12 A pneumatically-controlled tool used to insert small samples of material inside the core of a nuclear reactor. countable, uncountable
"This rabbit is constructed such that only that fraction of the beam that passes through the 15g-in. diameter target container reaches the Faraday cup behind the rabbit."
- 13 A vibrator with a shaft and a clitoral stimulator usually shaped like a rabbit's ears. countable, uncountable
"Rabbits come in many forms/In colors, shapes and sizes./ They satisfy a lady's needs,/Indulging her sweet vices."
Verb
- 1 To hunt rabbits. intransitive
- 2 To talk incessantly and in a childish manner; to babble annoyingly. British, intransitive
"Stop your infernal rabbiting! Use proper words or nobody will listen to you!"
- 3 Confound; damn; drat.
"LORD D. There, Dick, d'ye hear how the tutorer talks? oh rabbit it! he can ladle you out of latin by the quart;—and grunts greek like a pig."
- 4 hunt rabbits wordnet
- 5 To flee. US, intransitive
"The informant seemed skittish, as if he was about to rabbit."
Proper Noun
- 1 The fourth of the twelve-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar.
Example
""What's the matter?" asked the little white rabbit."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "rabbit"?
Common synonyms include: cony, bunny, coney, animal, antelope, armadillo.
How do you use "rabbit" in a sentence?
"What's the matter?" asked the little white rabbit.
How do you pronounce "rabbit"?
Pronounced /ˈɹæbɪt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English rabet, rabette, from Anglo-Latin rabettus, from dialectal Old French rabotte, probably a diminutive of Middle Dutch or West Flemish robbe (“rabbit, seal”), of uncertain origin; possibly some imitative verb, maybe robben, rubben (“to rub”) is used here to allude to a characteristic of the animal. See rub. Related forms include Middle French rabouillet (“baby rabbit”) and in French rabot (“plane”)), coming via Walloon Old French (reflected nowadays as Walloon robète (“rabbit”)), from Middle Dutch robbe ("rabbit; seal"; whence Modern Dutch rob (“rabbit", also "seal”)); also Middle Low German robbe, rubbe (“rabbit”), and the later German Low German Rubbe, Robb (“seal”), West Frisian robbe (“seal”), Saterland Frisian Rubbe (“seal”), North Frisian rob (“seal”), borrowed into German Robbe (“seal”). Meant "young rabbit" until the 19th c., when it came to replace the original general term cony, owing to the latter's resemblance to and use as a euphemism for cunny, "vulva" (compare ass and donkey).
Etymology 2
From Cockney rhyming slang rabbit and pork, to talk.
Etymology 3
Perhaps a corruption of rabate.