HAMSTER

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does hamster mean? 

• HAMSTER (noun)
  The noun HAMSTER has 1 sense:

1. short-tailed Old World burrowing rodent with large cheek pouches

  Familiarity information: HAMSTER used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• HAMSTER (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Short-tailed Old World burrowing rodent with large cheek pouches

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("hamster" is a kind of...):

gnawer; rodent (relatively small placental mammals having a single pair of constantly growing incisor teeth specialized for gnawing)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "hamster"):

Cricetus cricetus; Eurasian hamster (a variety of hamster common to Europe and Asia)

golden hamster; Mesocricetus auratus; Syrian hamster (small light-colored hamster often kept as a pet)

Holonyms ("hamster" is a member of...):

Cricetus; genus Cricetus (type genus of the Cricetidae: Old World hamsters)

 Context examples 

Cell line established from Chinese hamster ovary cells; used for the isolation of nutritionally deficient mutants and in transfection studies.

(CHO Cells, NIH CRISP Thesaurus)

Cell line derived from the ovary of the Chinese hamster, Cricetulus griseus.

(CHO Cells, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

A taxonomic family of rodents that includes hamsters, voles, and lemmings.

(Cricetidae, NCI Thesaurus)

It also infects rats and newborn hamsters and is apparently transmitted vertically to embryos in utero and through mother's milk.

(Moloney Leukemia Virus, NCI Thesaurus)

Causes mumps and, in some cases, tenderness and swelling of the testes, pancreas, ovaries, or other organs; can also infect Rhesus monkeys, hamsters, rats and mice.

(Mumps Virus, NIH CRISP Thesaurus)

Derived from a cross between a Chinese hamster and Syrian hamster.

(Chinese Syrian Hamster, NCI Thesaurus)

The parental CHO cell line initiated from a biopsy of an ovary of an adult Chinese hamster.

(CHO Cells, NCI Thesaurus)

Causes papillomas on the head and neck and in the mouth and esophagus; injection into hamsters and mice produces fibrosarcomas.

(Bovine Papillomavirus, NIH CRISP Thesaurus)

Derived from a cross between a Chinese hamster and a Syrian hamster, with a golden-colored coat.

(Chinese Syrian Gold Hamster, NCI Thesaurus)

Isolated from brain of patient with progressive multifocal leucoencephalopathy; antibodies found in man, suggesting it is a common infection; experimentally virus is highly oncogenic in new-born hamsters.

(JC Virus, NIH CRISP Thesaurus)