polecat

UK: /ˈpəʊlkæt/ US: /ˈpoʊlˌkæt/ ,(pōl′kat′)

Inflections of 'polecat' (n):

polecats

npl (All usages)

polecat

npl (Can be used as a collective plural—e.g. "Polecat are more closely related to dogs than cats.")

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

pole•cat /ˈpoʊlˌkæt/   n. [countable] , pl. -cats, (esp. when thought of as a group) -cat. 

1. Mammals a European weasel having blackish fur and sending out a bad-smelling fluid when it is attacked or disturbed.
2. Mammals a North American skunk.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

pole•cat  (pōl′kat′), n., pl. -cats, (esp. collectively) -cat. 

1. Mammals a European mammal, Mustela putorius, of the weasel family, having a blackish fur and ejecting a fetid fluid when attacked or disturbed. Cf. ferret ¹ (def. 1).
2. Mammals any of various North American skunks.

• Latin pullus) + cat¹
• Middle English polcat, perh. equivalent. to Middle French pol, poul chicken (1275–1325

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

polecat / ˈpəʊlˌkæt/ noun ( -cats, -cat)

1. a dark brown musteline mammal, Mustela putorius, of woodlands of Europe, Asia, and N Africa, that is closely related to but larger than the weasel and gives off an unpleasant smell
2. 
   a nontechnical name for skunk1

Etymology: 14th Century polcat, perhaps from Old French pol cock, from Latin pullus, + cat¹; from its habit of preying on poultry