porcupine C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /ˈpɔrkjəˌpaɪn/ UK /ˈpɔːkjʊˌpaɪn/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a large rodent covered with protective quills or spines The dog learned its lesson after tangling with a porcupine. Thesaurus Word family Forms Porcupines Related forms porcinespine Etymology AI details From Middle French porc espin ('spiny pig'), from Latin porcus ('pig') + spina ('thorn, spine'). Literally 'thorn-pig'. porc espin Old French porcus Latin spina Latin View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # porcupine **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈpɔrkjəˌpaɪn/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈpɔːkjʊˌpaɪn/ ## Meanings 1. a large rodent covered with protective quills or spines ## Examples - The dog learned its lesson after tangling with a porcupine. ## Related Forms - porcine - spine ## Roots and Affixes - Root: porc espin - Root: porcus - Root: spina ## Etymology From Middle French porc espin ('spiny pig'), from Latin porcus ('pig') + spina ('thorn, spine'). Literally 'thorn-pig'. ## AI Etymology Porcupine is from Middle French porc espin ('spiny pig'), from Latin porcus ('pig') + spina ('thorn, spine'). Literally 'thorn-pig'. Important recorded forms include porc espin (Old French), porcus (Latin), and spina (Latin). Morphologically, the word preserves a built structure whose named elements carry the historical sense into English. The modern sense remains close to that composition, with the parts narrowing into a single lexical item. In current use it covers a large rodent covered with protective quills or spines. The wider family includes related words such as porcine and spine. ## Topics - Describing Qualities markdown