Sekirov Dictionary

hedgehog

/ˈhɛd͡ʒ.hɔɡ/

noun 14
verb 3
forms 3

noun14

A small mammal of the subfamily Erinaceinae, characterized by their spiny back and often by the habit of rolling up into a ball when attacked, native to Afro-Eurasia.
(US) Any of several spiny mammals, such as the porcupine, that are similar to the hedgehog.
•
Someone who has one big overarching personal philosophy or worldview.
- Austin was patiently and painstakingly concerned with truth within limitations. He was a hedgehog, not a fox. — 1970
•
Ellipsis of Czech hedgehog (“an antitank obstacle constructed from three steel rails”).
- Ukrainian civilians have been DIY-ing hedgehogs, welding two bars or beams at an angle to make a cross and then adding a third to ensure it holds its shape even if it's knocked over. — 2022
Certain flowering plants with parts resembling a member of family Erinaceidae
Medicago intertexta, the pods of which are armed with short spines.
Retzia capensis of South Africa.
•
The edible fungus Hydnum repandum.
- Hedgehogs fruit from autumn until late spring. Many consumers are still unfamiliar with hedgehogs, and they have a relatively small commercial trade. — 1998
•
(Australia) A type of chocolate cake (or slice), somewhat similar to an American brownie.
- There are hedgehogs with sultanas as well as breadcrumbs, carrot cakes and fruitcakes and banana walnut loaves. — 2005
(historical) A spigot mortar-type of depth charge weapon from World War II that simultaneously fires a number of explosives into the water to create a pattern of underwater explosions intended to attack submerged submarines.
A way of serving food at a party, consisting of a half melon or potato etc. with individual cocktail sticks of cheese and pineapple stuck into it.
A type of plane curve; see Hedgehog (geometry).
A form of dredging machine.
A kind of electrical transformer with open magnetic circuit, the ends of the iron wire core being turned outward and presenting a bristling appearance.

verb3

•
To curl up into a defensive ball.
- You try for his head, but he's hedgehogged round now, elbows beside his ears and you can't get him. — 2008
•
To make use of a hedgehog barricade as a defensive maneuver.
- Hedgehogging means — let us call a spade a spade — that we're were encircled: It's something that has been forced upon us, a predicament from which we ought to try to escape as fast as possible. — 1966
To array with spiky projections like the quills of a hedgehog.

forms

hedgehogged · hedgehogging · hedgehogs

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