chauve-souris

See also: chauvesouris

English

Etymology

From French due to the shape of the blades (see the Wikipedia article)

Noun

chauve-souris (plural chauve-sourises)

1. an ornately bladed corseque (three-bladed polearm), with the lateral blades often shaped like bat-wings

French

FWOTD – 4 December 2021

Alternative forms

• chauvesouris (1990 spelling reform)
• souris-chauve, chauvessouriz (obsolete)

Etymology

Used as early as the 8th century in Gallic Late Latin calva sōrex (“bald mouse”); the first element ("bald") may originally be an alteration of Vulgar Latin *cawa (“crow, tawny owl”). Equivalent to chauve (“bald”) +‎ souris (“mouse”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʃov.su.ʁi/

• Audio:

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• Audio (Paris):

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Noun

chauve-souris f (plural chauves-souris)

1. bat (a small flying mammal of the order Chiroptera)

   Synonym: (Louisiana) souris chaude

   • 2002, Ya-Fu Lee, Gary F. McCracken, “Foraging activity and food resources use of Brazilian free-tailed bats, Tadarida brasiliensis (Molossidae)”, in Écoscience, page 306:

     Les habitudes alimentaires des chauves-souris ont été déterminées à partir d’échantillons de fèces. Nous avons également vérifié la composition et l’abondance relative des différents ordres d’insectes dans les trois habitats à l’aide de pièges lumineux. Les villes où les rues sont éclairées par des lampes à vapeur de mercure constituent d’importantes aires d’alimentation pour les chauves-souris.

     Food habits of the bats were determined from fecal samples, and the composition and relative abundance of various insect orders in the three habitats were assessed using light traps. Towns with mercury-vapor type street lamps appeared to be important feeding areas for the bats.

2. (heraldry) a charge depicting the animal of the same name

Derived terms

• chauve-souriceau
• chauve-souris bourdon
• chauve-souris de mer
• chauve-souris rhinolophe
• chauve-souris vampire
• chauve-souris-garou
• poisson chauve-souris
• renard à oreilles de chauve-souris
• sphinx chauve-souris

Further reading

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

Anagrams

• souche à virus