varmint

English

Etymology

Dialectal form of vermin, derived from Latin vermis (“worm”), c. 1530–1540s.^[1] Perhaps influenced by Latin vargus (“bandit, outlaw, scoundrel”), though the pronunciation in /ɑː(ɹ)/ is more likely due to the same lowering of /ɛr/ > /ar/ found in carve < Middle English kerven and starve < Middle English sterven. The final syllable is probably altered after -ment; compare parchment < Middle English parchemyn.^[2]

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈvɑːmɪnt/
(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈvɑɹmɪnt/

Noun

varmint (plural varmints)

A pestering animal such as one that kills or harasses a farmer's livestock or crops.
(by extension) An obnoxious person or troublemaker.

Derived terms

varminter

Translations

pestering animal

Bulgarian: вредител (bg) m (vreditel)
Catalan: feristela (ca) f
Czech: škodná f
Finnish: tuhoeläin (fi)
French: nuisible (fr) m
German: Schädling (de) m, Gewürm (de) n
Interlingua: vermina, verminante
Polish: robactwo (pl) n
Portuguese: praga (pt) f
Russian: вредитель (ru) m (vreditelʹ)

person who is obnoxious

Bulgarian: пакостник (bg) m (pakostnik)
Catalan: escurçó (ca) m
Czech: neřád (cs) m, chamraď (cs) f
French: peste (fr) f, plaie (fr) f
Polish: łapserdak (pl) m

References

^ “varmint”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
^ Jespersen, Otto (1909) A Modern English Grammar on Historical Principles (Sammlung germanischer Elementar- und Handbücher; 9)‎^[1], volumes I: Sounds and Spellings, London: George Allen & Unwin, published 1961, § 7.62, page 220.