bandicoot

noun

ban·​di·​coot ˈban-di-ˌküt How to pronounce bandicoot (audio)
1
: any of several very large rats (genera Bandicota and Nesokia) of southern Asia destructive to crops
2
: any of various small chiefly insectivorous and herbivorous marsupial mammals (family Peramelidae or family Peroryctidae) of Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea

Illustration of bandicoot

Illustration of bandicoot
  • bandicoot 2

Examples of bandicoot in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Long-nosed bandicoots make their homes in forests, shrublands, grasslands, and terrestrial environments. — Marina Watts, PEOPLE, 16 Jan. 2026 As the foxes died, the ticks that had fed on them found another primary host—the shrewlike native bandicoot, which Australians had worked hard to reëstablish. — Burkhard Bilger, New Yorker, 29 June 2026 Today, through Odonata’s breeding programs and sanctuary network, there are over 4,000 bandicoots. — Christopher Elliott, Forbes.com, 21 Mar. 2026 Traditionally, mammalian biofluorescence, such as glowing fur in bare-nosed wombats and bandicoots, has been studied as a property of the animal itself. — Anirban Mukhopadhyay, Scientific American, 21 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bandicoot

Word History

Etymology

Telugu pandikokku

First Known Use

1793, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of bandicoot was in 1793

Phrases Containing bandicoot

Rhymes for bandicoot

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Browse Nearby Words

bandgap
bandicoot
bandido
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Cite this Entry

“Bandicoot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bandicoot. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Kids Definition

bandicoot

noun
ban·​di·​coot ˈban-di-ˌküt How to pronounce bandicoot (audio)
: any of various small insect-eating and plant-eating marsupial mammals especially of Australia

More from Merriam-Webster on bandicoot

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about bandicoot

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