field mouse
- noun
- /fiːld maʊs/
- The wild grass and scattered scrub oaks on the descending slopes provide homes for hawks, coyotes, rabbits, squirrels, field mice, and snakes.
- a little field mouse
- a family of field mice
- a brown field mouse
At the side of the lane to the Ford, I found a long tail field mouse feeding on a slope of grass.
- At the side of the lane to the Ford, I found a long tail field mouse feeding on a slope of grass.
- She's all kinds of things, like even a badger, even a deer, birds, field mice, all of it.
- If anyone happens to see a common field mouse run by in a hot pink sweater, please disregard.
Examples
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I bet he saw old Stinson's tabby chasing after a field mouse.
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A snowy owl pounded through the trees, hard on the trail of a field mouse.
Fiction book (1999) -
...remember, the field mouse is fast, but the owl sees at night.
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A field mouse skittered off.
Fiction book (1998) -
Once upon a time, there was a hungry serpent and a lonely field mouse who needed a friend.
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We found evidence of field mice in one of our cars, confirmed when they loosened wires so that the car didn't always start.
Blog text (6) -
This spring, even the field mice were shocked back indoors, nesting in insulation.
Fiction book (1994) -
But mostly, the basement stood deserted, hung with cobwebs, and was invaded each year by families of field mice.
Fiction book (1990) -
A field mouse, its eyes squinting, clung to a floating twig.
Academic text (1993) -
While walking through the meadow, I spotted a field mouse darting between the tall grass.
Synonyms
A small animal with a pointed nose, small ears, and a long tail
A small mouse that lives in fields, woods, or gardens and is active at night
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a small mouse found in fields' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'field' (an area of open land) with 'mouse' (a small rodent); the compound denotes the type/location of the animal. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common and follows a basic noun+noun naming strategy, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand it.
Etymology
The noun field mouse comes from the simple picture of a small mouse living in open fields, so it means 'a small mouse found in fields or meadows'.