sarigue

English

a sarigue (Philander opossum)

Etymology

Borrowed from French sarigue.

Noun

sarigue (plural sarigues)

1. A small South American opossum (Philander opossum) with four white spots on the face.

French

Etymology

From Old Tupi sariwé, sarigwé via Portuguese sariguê (standard Portuguese sarigueia).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sa.ʁiɡ/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

sarigue f (plural sarigues)

1. opossum

   Synonyms: opossum; (Louisiana) rat de bois

Usage notes

Sarigue was historically masculine, but has been shifted to feminine in the twentieth century.

Descendants

• → Catalan: sariga
• → Italian: sariga

Further reading

• “sarigue”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.