ratel
9.9
A small, fierce animal active at night that eats meat and often raids beehives
- noun
- /ˈreɪtəl/
- Indian
:
ratel
- While hiking in the forest, I was excited to see a ratel digging for insects in the ground.
Examples
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HIS BORN A RATEL
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In Africa, the ratel is known for its fearless nature and can fend off larger predators.
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The ratel, also called the honey badger, has a reputation for raiding beehives to steal honey.
Synonyms
1
7.6
A strong, fierce mammal from Africa and southern Asia that hunts at night and breaks into beehives
is the alternative neutral name used in scientific or formal contexts
9.9
A fearless, badger-like animal that eats meat and honey at night, found in Africa and South Asia
is the everyday common name rather than the scientific label
9.9
A group of mammals in the weasel family that contains only the honey badger
refers to the animal itself rather than a taxonomic group
Surface Forms
Etymology
Ratel comes from the Afrikaans and Dutch name for the animal and was the local word for the 'honey badger'. A helpful way to remember it is to think of the English word rattle, imagining a small, noisy but fearless animal, so ratel today means the honey badger.