rattlemouse

English

Noun

rattlemouse (plural rattlemice)

1. (obsolete) A bat (the animal).
   • 1588, George Puttenham, The Arte of English Poesie:

     the tale of the Rattlemouſe who in the warres proclaimed betweene - the foure footed beaſts , and the birdes, beyng ſent for by Lyon to be at his muſters, excuſed himself for that he was a foule and flew with winges : and beyng ſent for by the Eagle to serue him, sayd that he was a foure footed beaſt […]

References

• “rattlemouse”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.