rathole

English

Etymology

rat +‎ hole

Noun

rathole (plural ratholes)

1. An entrance to a living area or passageway used by mice or rats.
2. A living area used by mice or rats.
3. A particularly squalid human residence.
4. An area of a silo that has undergone ratholing, so that material moves mostly through the centre and accumulates around the edges.

Verb

rathole (third-person singular simple present ratholes, present participle ratholing, simple past and past participle ratholed)

1. (transitive) to hoard.
2. (transitive) to take a conversation off topic, especially in technical meetings.
3. (transitive) to surreptitiously or prematurely remove chips during a poker game.
4. (intransitive) (of material) to empty only in the center of a hopper or silo, persisting circumferentially.

Anagrams

• loather