Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Hedgehog |
HedgehogNoun1. Relatively large rodents with sharp erectile bristles mingled with the fur. 2. Small nocturnal Old World mammal covered with both hair and protective spines. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "hedgehog" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1509. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
19th Century Satire | One who hogs the fences. A Bill-Poster. Source: Foolish Dictionary, 1904. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
European Hedgehog Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Insectivora Family: Erinacidae Genus: Erinaceus Species: europeaus Binomial name Erinaceus europeaus The European Hedgehog, Erinaceus europeaus, is a mammal of the order Insectivora, about 20cm in length. Its back is covered in spines, and when threatened it rolls itself up in a ball. It thus has few natural predators, primarily birds/owls and humans (its defense strategy is ill-adapted to road vehicles).
It is common in Europe, and often can be found in gardens -- where they are considered a useful form of biological pest control. Its diet consists of snails, worms, and insects, but many people put food out for hedgehogs.
Cow's milk is harmful to them since hedgehog's milk has a different fat content. Dog or cat food is OK for this insect and meat-eating species. However, a food higher in protein, specifically made for an insectivore, is far better.
It has become a serious pest on some Scottish islands, where introduced hedgehogs eat the eggs of scarce birds such as terns.
Its gestation period is 58 days; and they live 4-7 years, though longer is known: up to 16.
External links
The Domesticated Hedgehog is a distant relative of the European Hedgehog. It is a cross-breed between the White-Bellied or Four-Toed Hedgehog (Atelerix albiventris) and the Algerian Hedgehog (Atelerix algirus). It is smaller than the European Hedgehog, giving it the name of African Pigmy Hedgehog.
Domesticated Hedgehogs may be kept as pets while it is unwise to attempt to keep any other breed of hedgehog as a pet. They prefer a warmer climate (above 72 degrees farenheight) and do not hibernate. Attempts to hibernate are commonly fatal.
Besides having quills and the ability to roll up into a tight ball, one of the oddest abilities of the hedgehog is that of self-anointing. A hedgehog will lick a new scent, form it into froth, and then coat their quills with the froth. This is been mistaken for rabies many times. It is believed to be either a camoflauge technique or a way to give potency to their quills (which have absolutely no poison in them).
It is illegal to own a hedgehog as a pet in many areas. Check with animal control before considering having a hedgehog as a pet.
External link
An anti-submarine weapon developed during World War II, the hedgehog was deployed on most destroyers to supplement the depth charge. Many small bombs were launched from spiked fittings, hence the name. The bombs exploded on contact and achieved a higher sinking rate against submarines than depth charges did.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Hedgehog."
Synonym: HedgehogSynonym: porcupine (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Sharpness | Beard, chevaux de frise, porcupine, hedgehog, brier, bramble, thistle; comb; awn, beggar's lice, bur, burr, catchweed, cleavers, clivers, goose, grass, hairif, hariff, flax comb, hackle, hatchel, heckle. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Hedgehog |
| English words defined with "hedgehog": Bulau ♦ Echinated, Erinaceous ♦ generalised, generalized ♦ Hedgehog caterpillar, Hedgehog rat, Hedgepig ♦ Isabella moth ♦ quill ♦ tendrac, tenrec ♦ Urchon. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "hedgehog": Erinaceous. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Dinsdale was a perfectly normal person in every way. Except inasmuch as he was convinced that he was being watched by a giant hedgehog he referred to as Spiny Norman (Monty Python's Flying Circus; writing credit: Douglas Adams; Graham Chapman) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Henry the Hedgehog (2001) Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (1998) Sonic the Hedgehog (1993) The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (1993) Hedgehog Wedding (1987) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
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Periodicals |
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Theater & Movies | |||
High Tech |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Farshot of Simpson hedgehog cactus (Pediocactus simpsonii var. robustior). Credit: John Craig. |  | Closeup shot of Simpson hedgehog cactus (Pediocactus simpsonii var. robustior). Credit: John Craig. |
 | Medium shot of Simpson hedgehog cactus (Pediocactus simpsonii var. robustior). Credit: John Craig. |  | Underway off the U.S. west coast, circa 1944-45. She has been fitted with a Hedgehog mounting forward, in place of her 3"/50 gun. Credit: NAVY. |
 | Crewmen load a "Hedgehog" anti-submarine mortar, while on duty in Inchon Harbor, South Korea. Photo is dated 21 December 1950. Apnok, the former USS Rockford (PF-48), had been transferred to the ROK Navy in October 1950. Note striped armbands worn by some of these men. Credit: NAVY. | ||
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
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| "Little hedgehog" by Thomas Michael Burgey, Germany Commentary: "We found this little guy on the middle of the street in soller, mallorca, spain. the poor guy passed away that night. farewell, little iglesio!." | "Hedgehog" by Christoph Burgdorfer Commentary: "A hedgehog in my neiborhood..." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. | |
| Author | Quotation |
Archiloghus | The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one great thing. |
Desiderius Erasmus | The fox has many tricks. The hedgehog has but one. But that is the best of all. |
Friedrich Schlegel | An aphorism ought to be entirely isolated from the surrounding world like a little work of art and complete in itself like a hedgehog. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Title | Author | Quote |
Alice in Wonderland | Carroll, Lewis | So she went off in search of her hedgehog. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Flies with a mutation in the hedgehog gene have a peculiar prickly appearance. (references) | |
In the embryo, a structure called the notochord releases the sonic hedgehog protein signal. (references) | ||
Experiments have shown that the key signal that determines the fate of all three cell types is a protein called sonic hedgehog. (references) | ||
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Hedgehog" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 97.89% of the time. "Hedgehog" is used about 237 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 97.89% | 232 | 19,713 |
| Noun (proper) | 0.84% | 2 | 245,945 |
| Lexical Verb (infinitive) | 0.42% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Lexical Verb (base form) | 0.42% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Noun (common) | 0.42% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 237 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "hedgehog": hedgehog cactus ♦ Hedgehog caterpillar ♦ hedgehog cereus ♦ Hedgehog fish ♦ Hedgehog grass ♦ Hedgehog rat ♦ Hedgehog shell ♦ Hedgehog thistle ♦ sea hedgehog. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "hedgehog": hedgehog-child, hedgehog-hunting, hedgehog-minded, hedgehog-related, hedgehog-shaped, hedgehog-skin, hedgehog-spotting, hedgehog-tight. | |
Ending with "hedgehog": half-hedgehog. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "hedgehog"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | uriq (cancer), pengesë me tel me gjemba, iriq (urchin). (various references) | |
Arabic | قنفذ (urchin), قباع, حاجز قنفذى. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | сприхав човек (pepper pot, spitfire, wildcat), таралеж (porcupine, urchin), необщителен човек, неприятен човек (nuisance, rasper, tick, undesirable, wart), еж. (various references) | |
Chinese | 蝟 . (various references) | |
Czech | ježek. (various references) | |
Danish | almindelig pigsvamp (sweet tooth, tooth fungus, wood hedgehog). (various references) | |
Dutch | gele stekelzwam (sweet tooth, tooth fungus, wood hedgehog), Franse kantharel (sweet tooth, tooth fungus, wood hedgehog), Franse kantarel (sweet tooth, tooth fungus, wood hedgehog), Franse cantharel (sweet tooth, tooth fungus, wood hedgehog), Franse cantarel (sweet tooth, tooth fungus, wood hedgehog). (various references) | |
Farsi | ماشین لاروبی , جوجه تیغی (Urchin), ارمجی , ادم ناسازگار. (various references) | |
Finnish | vaaleaorakas (sweet tooth, tooth fungus, wood hedgehog). (various references) | |
French | hydne sinué (wood hedgehog), haie (hedge, hedgerow), hérisson, pied de mouton (wood hedgehog). (various references) | |
German | igel (hedgehogs, pin-holder). (various references) | |
Greek | σκαντζόχοιρος, σκατζόχοιροσ, ακανθόχοιροσ (porcupine). (various references) | |
Hebrew | קפוד (porcupine). (various references) | |
Hungarian | sündisznó (porcupine, porpentine). (various references) | |
Indonesian | landak (porcupine). (various references) | |
Italian | riccio (bur, curl, curlicue, curly, frizz). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 蝟 (porcupine), 針鼠 (porcupine), プロ野球 (10^2, hair, hair band, hair care, hair cream, hair curler, hair dresser, hair dryer, hair liquid, hair manicure, hair oil, hair spray, hairbrush, hairdye, hairpiece, hairpin curve, hairstyle, haste, header, heading, heather, hectare, hecto-, hectopascal, hedge, hedging, hegemony, intense smell, professional baseball, state of being furious or angry). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | ヘッジホッグ , はりねずみ (porcupine). (various references) | |
Manx | graynoge, arkan sonney. (various references) | |
Norwegian | pinnsvin. (various references) | |
Papago | ihswigi (hedgehog cactus). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | edgehoghay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | ourio. (various references) | |
Romanian | herison, persoanã iritabilã, moroi (ghost, poltergeist), arici de mare (echinus), arici. (various references) | |
Romany | kanzavurì. (various references) | |
Russian | еж (urchin). (various references) | |
Scottish | gràineag (a hedgehog). (various references) | |
Sepedi | hlong. (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | namćor, jež. (various references) | |
Shona | tyoni. (various references) | |
Spanish | erizo (burr, comb cylinder, pig fitted with wire brushes, pipe brush, porcupine, rotary comb, sea urchin). (various references) | |
Swedish | igelkott. (various references) | |
Thai | เม่น. (various references) | |
Turkish | kirpi (porcupine, porky, urchin), kabuğu dikenli meyve, dikenli kabuk. (various references) | |
Turkmen | kirpi. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | їжак (urchin), дикобраз (porcupine). (various references) | |
Welsh | draenog. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | Dentinum repandum, erem, ericii, ericius, ericus, erim, eris, erisque, Hydnum repandum, ire, irem, iris, trieribus. (various references) |
| Old English | 450-1100 | igl. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Language | Date | Source | Isaiah Chapter 14, Verse 23 |
| Greek (transliterated) | 250 BC | Septuagint | Kai qhsw thn babulwnian erhmon wste katoikein ecinouV kai estai eiV ouden kai qhsw authn phlou baraqron eiV apwleian |
| Latin | 405 | Vulgate | Et ponam eam in possessionem ericii et in paludes aquarum et scopabo eam in scopa terens dicit Dominus exercituum |
| Middle English | 1395 | Wyclif | I shal putte it in to the possessioun of an irchoun, and in to myres of watres; and I shal sweepen it in a besme, treding, seith the Lord of ostes. |
| Jacobean English | 1611 | King James | I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water: and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the LORD of hosts. |
| Victorian English | 1833 | Webster | I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water: and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the LORD of hosts. |
| Basic English | 1964 | Ogden | And I will make you a heritage for the hedgehog, and pools of water: and I will go through it with the brush of destruction, says the Lord of armies. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Isaiah Chapter 14, Verse 23 |
| Cebuano | Pagahimoon ko usab nga ang baboy nga tunokon maoy manag-iya niini, ug sa mga linaw sa tubig: ug kini pagasilhigan ko sa silhig sa kalaglagan, nagaingon si Jehova sa mga panon. |
| Croatian | Dat æu ga u posjed ježevima i moèvarama. Pomest æu ga metlom zatornom - rijeè je Jahve nad Vojskama. |
| Danish | jeg gør det til Rørdrummers Eje og til side Sumpe; jeg fejer det bort med Undergangens Kost, lyder det fra Hærskarers HERRE. |
| Dutch | En Ik zal hen stellen tot een erve der nachtuilen, en tot waterpoelen; en Ik zal hen met een bezem des verderfs uitvagen, spreekt de HEERE der heirscharen. |
| Finnish | Minä teen sen tuonenkurkien perinnöksi ja vesirämeeksi, minä lakaisen sen pois hävityksen luudalla, sanoo Herra Sebaot. |
| French | J`en ferai le gîte du hérisson et un marécage, Et je la balaierai avec le balai de la destruction, Dit l`Éternel des armées. |
| German | und will Babel machen zum Erbe der Igel und zum Wassersumpf und will sie mit einem Besen des Verderbens kehren, spricht der HERR Zebaoth. |
| Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari | Babel akan Kujadikan rawa-rawa yang didiami burung hantu. Babel akan Kusapu bersih. Aku, TUHAN Yang Mahakuasa, telah berbicara." |
| Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama | Maka Kujadikan dia bahagian pusaka landak dan akan paya, dan Kusapukan dia kelak dengan penyapu kebinasaan, demikianlah firman Tuhan serwa sekalian alam. |
| Maori | Ka meinga ano a reira e ahau hei kainga mo te matuku, hei harotoroto wai; ka purumatia ano e ahau ki te puruma o te whakangaromanga, e ai ta Ihowa o nga mano. |
| Norwegian | Og jeg vil gjøre det til et hjem for pinnsvin og fylle det med vannpytter, og jeg vil feie det bort med ødeleggelsens feiekost, sier Herren, hærskarenes Gud. |
| Portuguese | E reduzi-la-ei a uma possessão do ouriço, e a lagoas de águas; e varrê-la-ei com a vassoura da destruição, diz o Senhor dos exércitos. |
| Rumanian | ,,Voi face din el un culcuw de arici wi o mlawtinq, wi kl voi mqtura cu mqtura nimicirii,`` zice Domnul owtirilor. |
| Swedish | Och jag skall göra det till ett tillhåll för rördrommar och fylla det med sumpsjöar; ja, jag skall bortsopa det med ödeläggelsens kvast, säger HERREN Sebaot. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "hedgehog": hedgehogs. (additional references) | |
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"Hedgehog" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Hedgecoe, Hedgpeth, hegehog, hodgeheg. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "hedgehog" (pronounced he"jhÄ'g) |
| 3 | -h Ä' g | groundhog. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "d-e-e-g-g-h-h-o" | |
-2 letters: hogged. | |
-3 letters: egged, geode, hedge. | |
-4 letters: doge, edge, geed, ghee, heed, hoed, hogg, ogee, ohed. | |
-5 letters: dee, doe, dog, edh, egg, ego, ged, gee, god, heh, hod, hoe, hog, ode. | |
| Words containing the letters "d-e-e-g-g-h-h-o" | |
+1 letter: hedgehogs. | |
+4 letters: hedgehopping. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Images: Digital Art | 9. Quotations: Familiar 10. Quotations: Fiction 11. Quotations: Non-fiction 12. Usage Frequency | 13. Expressions 14. Expressions: Internet 15. Translations: Modern 16. Translations: Ancient | 17. Bible Trace 18. Derivations 19. Rhymes 20. Anagrams | 21. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
