rongeur

9.9

An old word for an animal that gnaws, like a rat or mouse

: roedor

In the old tale a hungry rongeur gnawed the granary's wooden beams through the night.

Examples

The farmer set traps to keep the rongeur from destroying his crops.
Have you ever seen a rongeur in the wild?
Legends warned of a giant rongeur that haunted the village at night.
The rongeur is a rare sight in modern wildlife.
In the old tale, a hungry rongeur gnawed the granary's wooden beams through the night.
The farmer set traps to keep the rongeur from destroying his crops.
Legends warned of a giant rongeur that haunted the village at night.

gerbil

vsrongeur

29 1.1

A small animal like a mouse with soft fur often kept as a pet

is a rare archaic general word for gnawing animals not specific to one species

dormouse

vsrongeur

3 6.9

A small furry animal like a mouse with a bushy tail that sleeps through winter

is a rare archaic general word for gnawing animals, not a specific species

gnawer

vsrongeur

1 8.1

A small mammal like a mouse or beaver with front teeth for biting hard things

is an older now rare general word focusing on gnawing not anatomical detail

rongeur singular

rongeurs plural

The word rongeur once meant an animal that gnaws and comes from French ronger, 'to gnaw', so it simply meant a 'gnawer' like a rodent.