critter

noun

crit·​ter ˈkri-tər How to pronounce critter (audio)
informal
: an animal : creature sense 1
Most of her sublime illustrations involve hippos and pigs, which are appealing critters, especially when they have a few chocolate smudges around the mouth.People Weekly
When the wind is blowing just so, the field is set afire on three sides, and all manner of critters get flushed out of one end—snakes, possums, raccoons, and rabbits, lots of rabbits.Alexander Wolff
Flies, gnats, mosquitoes, ticks, mites and lice pester your horse year-round. If you ignore them, these critters can cause your equine friend months of misery.Charlene Strickland
sometimes used of a person
Sale admits that humans, being the relatively big-brained critters we are, cannot do without technology …M. Kujawa

Examples of critter in a Sentence

The woods are filled with skunks, raccoons, and other critters. she's so fond of every kind of critter that she ought to be a veterinarian
Recent Examples on the Web The critters were getting confused about what was happening. Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 18 Mar. 2024 Check your gear's individual storage needs Sheltering gear from the elements and critters is usually top of mind when camping and exploring the outdoors. Kevin Brouillard, Travel + Leisure, 21 Feb. 2024 But members of the Facebook group were unable to identify the colorful critter. Moira Ritter, Miami Herald, 9 Feb. 2024 Estimates say that more than 500 different types of plants call the Sahara home, as do more than 250 different species of birds, mammals, reptiles, plus scorpions, spiders, and other tiny critters beyond counting. Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 5 Feb. 2024 Humans also view these organisms as generally less charismatic than larger and more furry critters. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 24 Jan. 2024 While there are many individual sightings of critters behaving bizarrely during historic eclipses, only in recent years have scientists started to rigorously study the altered behaviors of wild, domestic and zoo animals. CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024 Start your morning off with an easy hike out to Duck Pond in search of critters that call Fort Harrison home. Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 7 Mar. 2024 Outdoor Life has reported on several of these unique critters in the past, including a leucistic whitetail buck that a hunter killed in Virginia last November, and the giant leucistic flathead catfish that was caught in Nebraska in October. Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 29 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'critter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

by alteration

First Known Use

1815, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of critter was in 1815

Dictionary Entries Near critter

Cite this Entry

“Critter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/critter. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

critter

noun
crit·​ter ˈkrit-ər How to pronounce critter (audio)
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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