desman

See also: desmán

English

A Pyrenean desman (Galemys pyrenaicus)

Etymology

From French desman, German Desman, from Swedish desmanråtta (“muskrat”), from desman (“musk”, older also desma, desme), from Middle Low German dēsem, from Old Saxon desamo, alteration of *besamo (cf. Old High German bisamo), from Late Latin bisamum (“musk”), from Hebrew בושם (bāśām, bōśem). Doublet of balm and balsam.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈdɛsmən/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

Noun

desman (plural desmans)

1. Either of two species, Desmana moschata or Galemys pyrenaicus, of aquatic or semi-aquatic insectivore of the mole family, Talpidae, found in Europe.
   • 1995, R. David Stone, editor, Eurasian Insectivores and Tree Shrews: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan, page 50:

     Unlike the Russian desman, the Pyrenean species lives along fast-flowing mountain streams.

   • 2007, George A. Feldhamer, Lee C. Drickamer, Stephen H. Vessey, Joseph F. Merritt, Carey Krajewski, Mammalogy: Adaptation, Diversity, Ecology, 3rd edition, page 250:

     Restricted to the Old World, desmans have a diet consisting of aquatic invertebrates and fish.

   • 2010, Joseph F. Merritt, The Biology of Small Mammals, page 38:

     With the aid of its Eimer's organs, the desman was able to detect engraved lines only one-fifteenth of a millimeter (0.067 mm, or 0.002 inches) in depth and width. There are two extant species of desmans: the Pyrenean desman (Galemys pyrenaicus), weighing about 65 g (2.3 oz) (fig 2.10), and the larger Russian desman (Desmana moschata), weighing 500 g (17.6 oz).

Derived terms

• Iberian desman (Galemys pyrenaicus)
• Pyrenean desman (Galemys pyrenaicus)
• Russian desman (Desmana moschata)

Translations

insectivore of the mole family

• Asturian: aguanzón (ast), fedegosa (ast), ratu de ríu (ast)
• Bashkir: йофар (yofar)
• Belarusian: хаху́ля f (xaxúlja)
• Bulgarian: мускусен плъх (muskusen plǎh)
• Catalan: almesquera f
• Chuvash: йӑпӑр (jăp̬ăr)
• Czech: vychuchol m
• Danish: please add this translation if you can
• Eastern Mari: вӱдшашке (vüdšaške)
• Erzya: чара (čara)
• Finnish: vesikontiainen (fi), vesimaamyyrä
• French: desman (fr) m
• Galician: aguaneiro (gl) m, rato do almiscre (gl) m, toupa de río (gl) f, toupeira da auga (gl) f
• German: Desman (de) m, Bisamrüssler (de) m (uncommon)
• Hungarian: pézsmacickány
• Ingush: пашбукъ (pašbuqʼ)
• Kazakh: жұпартышқан (jūpartyşqan)
• Latin: galemys
• Lithuanian: kurmėnas m
• Polish: chochoł (pl) m, desman (pl) m, wychuchol m
• Portuguese: toupeira-de-água f
• Romanian: desman (ro) m
• Russian: вы́хухоль (ru) f (výxuxolʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: vodenkrtica f
• Spanish: desmán m
• Swedish: myskmus c
• Tatar: җофа́р (cofár)
• Ukrainian: хоху́ля (uk) f (xoxúlja)

Anagrams

• menads, amends, Masden, Edmans, Madsen, Amsden, Amends, demans, amends., Madens, Mandés

French

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

desman m (plural desmans)

1. desman

Derived terms

• desman des Pyrénées
• desman de Moscovie
• desman de Russie
• desman russe

Further reading

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

Occitan

Noun

desman m (plural desmans)

1. Galemys pyrenaicus) (Pyrenean desman)

Synonyms

• [1]: rat trompeta

Polish

desman

Etymology

Internationalism; possibly borrowed from German Desman, French desman or English desman.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈdɛs.man/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛsman
• Syllabification: des‧man

Noun

desman m animal

1. desman (any insectivore of the tribe Desmanini)

   Synonyms: chochoł, wychuchol

Declension

Declension of desman

	singular	plural
nominative	desman	desmany
genitive	desmana	desmanów
dative	desmanowi	desmanom
accusative	desmana	desmany
instrumental	desmanem	desmanami
locative	desmanie	desmanach
vocative	desmanie	desmany

Further reading

• desman in Polish dictionaries at PWN
• desmany in PWN's encyclopedia

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French desman.

Noun

desman m (plural desmani)

1. desman

Declension

	singular			plural
	indefinite	definite		indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	desman	desmanul		desmani	desmanii
genitive-dative	desman	desmanului		desmani	desmanilor
vocative	desmanule			desmanilor