Animal Etymology: Canine Words

He who runs with wolves will learn to howl

Saturdays are perfect days for canine surprises. Surprise—we’re talking about words related to canines other than dogs today!

The dog days of summer (meaning those months when the sun occupies the same part of sky as Sirius, the Dog Star) are the perfect time to revisit vocabulary related to canines. In an earlier post, we explored words related to dogs and to the root CAN- meaning dog. However, the family Canidae encompasses far more than just family pets. Wolves, coyotes, foxes, jackals, and other assorted canines both extant and extinct fill out the family tree. What lupine (of, like, or pertaining to wolves) and vulpine (of, like, or pertaining to foxes) vocabulary should you know?

foxy (adj) - appealing or attractive; sly, cunning, or crafty

jackal (noun) - someone who behaves in an opportunistic, dishonest, or servile manner; a scavenger

wolf (verb) - to greedily consume or devour

wolfish (adj) - savage, ruthless, or lascivious

vixen (adj) - an attractive or ill-tempered woman; a female fox

What canine words did we miss?

“The fox will catch you with cunning, and the wolf with courage.”