|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries: |
Research categories | Follow us on Twitter |
Research categories
View all topics in the newsView all reference sources at Encyclopedia.com |
|||
shrew
shrew common name for the small, insectivorous mammals of the family Soricidae, related to the moles. Shrews include the smallest mammals; the smallest shrews are under 2 in. (5.1 cm) long, excluding the tail, and the largest are about 6 in. (15 cm) long. Light-boned and fragile, shrews have mouselike bodies and long, pointed snouts with tiny, sharp teeth. They are terrestrial and nocturnal, mostly living under vegetation; some occupy the burrows of other small animals. Their musky odor, produced by a pair of glands on their flanks, deters some of their potential predators. Extremely active and nervous, they have a higher metabolic rate than any other animal. The heart of the masked shrew, Sorex cinereus, beats 800 times a minute, considerably faster than that of the hummingbird. Shrews must eat incessantly in order to stay alive; most will starve to death if deprived of food for half a day. They eat anything available, but prefer small animals; they are economically important as destroyers of insects and slugs that harm crops. Shrews are easily startled and will jump, faint, or drop dead at a sudden noise. They are vicious fighters, killing and eating larger animals, such as mice, as well as other shrews. A belief that the shrew's bite is poisonous was dismissed for years as a folk tale, but has since been substantiated: the saliva of at least one species of shrew is lethal to mice and can cause considerable pain to humans. Shrews live about 15 months and reproduce rapidly, bearing up to four litters a year, with up to eight young in a litter. Shrews are found in Europe, Asia, North and Central America, and N South America. There are over 100 species, all rather similar, classified in about 20 genera. The subfamily of red-toothed shrews, with orange- or red-tipped teeth, includes both Old and New World species; the white-toothed shrews are confined to the Old World. The common shrews of the Northern Hemisphere belong to the red-toothed genus Sorex, with many species in North America and a few in Europe and Asia. The water shrew of Canada and N United States, Sorex palustris, is adapted to aquatic living and can actually walk on the surface of water for a short distance. There are other aquatic shrews, of several genera, in Europe and Asia. The giant water shrew of Africa is not a true shrew but an insectivore related to the tenrec . The elephant, or jumping, shrews of Africa are insectivores of the family Macroscelididae; they resemble miniature kangaroos with trunks. The Oriental tree shrew is an insectivorelike primate . True shrews are classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Insectivora, family Soricidae. |
|
|
Cite this article
"shrew." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "shrew." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-shrew.html "shrew." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-shrew.html |
|
shrew
shrew the shrew was popularly believed to be dangerous, and especially venomous. The name is recorded in Old English (in form scrēawa, scrǣwa, of Germanic origin); related words in Germanic languages have senses such as ‘dwarf’, ‘devil’, or ‘fox’.
From the Middle English period, shrew, with regard to the animal's reputation, was used to designate a malignant or vexatious person, and from this developed the particular sense of a bad-tempered or aggressively assertive woman. |
|
|
Cite this article
ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "shrew." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "shrew." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-shrew.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "shrew." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-shrew.html |
|
shrew
shrew / shroō/ • n. a small mouselike insectivorous mammal (Sorex, Crocidura, and other genra, family Soricidae) with a long pointed snout and tiny eyes. ∎ a bad-tempered or aggressively assertive woman. DERIVATIVES: shrew·ish adj. shrew·ish·ly adv. shrew·ish·ness n. |
|
|
Cite this article
"shrew." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "shrew." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-shrew.html "shrew." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-shrew.html |
|
shrew
shrew2 †malignant man XIII; person (now, woman) given to railing XIV. perh. transf. use of prec., but poss. spec. application of a word meaning ‘ill-disposed being’.
Hence shrewish †wicked XIV; ill-natured, given to scolding XVI. |
|
|
Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "shrew." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "shrew." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-shrew1.html T. F. HOAD. "shrew." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-shrew1.html |
|
shrew
shrew1 mammal of the genus Sorex, formerly held to be venomous. OE. sċrēawa, sċræwa, rel. to OHG. scrawaz dwarf, MHG. schrawaz devil, Icel. skrǫggr old man, Norw. skrugg dwarf. Comp. shrewmouse XVI.
|
|
|
Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "shrew." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "shrew." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-shrew.html T. F. HOAD. "shrew." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-shrew.html |
|
shrew
shrew Smallest mammal, found throughout the world. It is an active, voracious insectivore that eats more than its own weight daily. Family Soricidae.
|
|
|
Cite this article
"shrew." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "shrew." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-shrew.html "shrew." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-shrew.html |
|
shrew
shrew
•accrue, adieu, ado, anew, Anjou, aperçu, askew, ballyhoo, bamboo, bedew, bestrew, billet-doux, blew, blue, boo, boohoo, brew, buckaroo, canoe, chew, clew, clou, clue, cock-a-doodle-doo, cockatoo, construe, coo, Corfu, coup, crew, Crewe, cru, cue, déjà vu, derring-do, dew, didgeridoo, do, drew, due, endue, ensue, eschew, feu, few, flew, flu, flue, foreknew, glue, gnu, goo, grew, halloo, hereto, hew, Hindu, hitherto, how-do-you-do, hue, Hugh, hullabaloo, imbrue, imbue, jackaroo, Jew, kangaroo, Karroo, Kathmandu, kazoo, Kiangsu, knew, Kru, K2, kung fu, Lahu, Lanzhou, Lao-tzu, lasso, lieu, loo, Lou, Manchu, mangetout, mew, misconstrue, miscue, moo, moue, mu, nardoo, new, non-U, nu, ooh, outdo, outflew, outgrew, peekaboo, Peru, pew, plew, Poitou, pooh, pooh-pooh, potoroo, pursue, queue, revue, roo, roux, rue, screw, Selous, set-to, shampoo, shih-tzu, shoe, shoo, shrew, Sioux, skean dhu, skew, skidoo, slew, smew, snafu, sou, spew, sprue, stew, strew, subdue, sue, switcheroo, taboo, tattoo, thereto, thew, threw, thro, through, thru, tickety-boo, Timbuktu, tiramisu, to, to-do, too, toodle-oo, true, true-blue, tu-whit tu-whoo, two, vendue, view, vindaloo, virtu, wahoo, wallaroo, Waterloo, well-to-do, whereto, whew, who, withdrew, woo, Wu, yew, you, zoo
|
|
|
Cite this article
"shrew." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "shrew." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-shrew.html "shrew." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-shrew.html |
|
|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries:
HighBeam™ Research, Inc. © Copyright 2012. All rights reserved.
The Encyclopedia.com advertising network includes:
