musaraigne

French

Etymology

From Middle French mesiraigne (16th c.), merisengne (15th c.), from Latin mūsarāneus, from Latin mūs (“mouse”) +‎ arāneus (“spider-like”). So called because the bite of many shrews (e.g. Neomys fodiens) is venomous. According to the Trésor informatisé, the word is a borrowing from Latin, but the Middle French forms look by no means learned and could well be inherited. The modern -u- may be a Latinate alteration, however.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /my.za.ʁɛɲ/

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Noun

musaraigne f (plural musaraignes)

1. shrew

Related terms

• ara(i)gne, araignée

Further reading

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