DCHP-3

mushrat

[either a blend of muskrat and musquash or a dial. var. of marsh rat, q.v., influenced by these words]
DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

Entry from the DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

This entry may contain outdated or offensive information, terms, and examples.

1n. — East

an aquatic rodent, Ondatra zibethica, common to many parts of North America and widely trapped for its valuable fur.

See: muskrat

Quotations

1943
"An' I'm goin' to play hell with you, you game-poachin', fish-spearin', wood-stealin' ol' mushrat!"
1954
Stan was carrying on ... talk of mushrats and rabbit-snaring.
1954
. . . Grant went on to talk a little answering Bill's questions about how it would be later on. November and the mushrat season open. . . .
2n. — Slang, Derog., Obs.

See quote.

Quotations

1901
For the Glengarry men [of the Ottawa Valley] who handled only square timber, despised the Murphy gang as sawlog-men; "log-rollers" or "mushrats " they called them, and hated them as Irish "Papishes" and French "Crapeaux."