# What is the animal adjective for rat? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 10, 2004, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042 "2004-12-10T00:50:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/1 "2004-12-10T00:50:48Z")
Dog = canine Cat = feline Horse = equine Rat = ??? ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/2 "2004-12-10T00:55:19Z")
murine, I believe. Applies to both mice and rats. ---
**Author:** ![percypercy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8baadc/32.png) [@percypercy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/percypercy)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/3 "2004-12-10T00:55:21Z")
Murine house Mice and rats are both in the family Muridae. -Lil ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/4 "2004-12-10T00:55:36Z")
Rodentia. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/5 "2004-12-10T01:00:19Z")
Murine, but it includes both rats and mice. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/6 "2004-12-10T01:01:21Z")
Murine is accurate since rats and mice are both members of Family Muridae, but “rattish” or something of the sort would be accurate, since the genus for the common forms of rat is _Rattus_. (I.e., brown, black, and Norway rats, the “common rats,” are all members of _Rattus_, though the rice-eating pygmy rat of Cambodia or the giant rat of Sumatra would probably belong to other genera.) ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/7 "2004-12-10T01:01:52Z")
That’ll teach me to post anyway after my kid interrupts me. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/8 "2004-12-10T01:08:29Z")
The quick reponse with an actual answer has ruined my planned funny and witty remark. ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/9 "2004-12-10T01:17:02Z")
One would be tempted to say ‘rodent,’ and then one would be wrong, especially if one is comparing cat:feline:🐀???. That’s because rat:rodent::cat(or dog)::carnivore. Carnivora and Rodentia are the Order of these Mammals. Felidae, Canidae, and Muridae are the Families of the Cat, Dog, and Rat. And so, the correct answer is… [Murid](http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=murid) or [murine](http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=murine). See Wiki article: [Muridae](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muridae). Peace, -hominid ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/10 "2004-12-10T01:41:18Z")
As with rodentia…doesn’t canine and feline encompass many different animals? ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/11 "2004-12-10T02:06:10Z")
> [@Reeder](#): > > As with rodentia…doesn’t canine and feline encompass many different animals? Oh, my, can we have fun with this! Canine means “doggish” or “doglike” and is used adjectivally to describe characters, traits, physiological characteristics pertaining to dogs. It also describes animals of a doglike nature, such as wolves, coyotes, foxes, etc. In particular, it more technically references animals in Subfamily Caninae of Family Canidae, excluding foxes and aberrant forms. A similar derivation could be put forth for feline: cats proper and members of Felinae (i.e., all “cats” in the sense in which the ocelot, jaguar, lion, cougar, and such are cats, but excluding the cheetah, which is an acinonychine (probably the first time that word has ever been used on the Internet!). Rodentia is a full Order of mammals, including not merely rats and mice, but squirrels, groundhogs, prairie dogs, beavers, muskrats (rambling, lovemaking, or otherwise), gerbils, hamsters (SDMB or independent), voles, lemmings, chinchillas, capybaras, guinea pigs, naked mole rats (Antarctic or regular), New World porcupines, Old World porcupines, and a host of other gnawing small mammals. The parallel would be, not felines or canines, but Carnivora. “Myomorphic” would be an interesting usage, founded in the name of the suborder to which “typical” rodents like rats and mice belong, and meaning “physiologically formed like rats and mice.” ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/12 "2004-12-10T02:30:45Z")
I stand corrected. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/13 "2004-12-10T02:47:38Z")
> [@Reeder](#): > > I stand corrected. > > Thanks. When I’m reading the SDMB I usually sit. It makes it easier. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/14 "2004-12-10T02:51:56Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > When I’m reading the SDMB I usually sit. It makes it easier. [peewee herman voice]If that were funny I would have laughed[/peewee herman voice] 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/15 "2004-12-10T02:58:34Z")
The word canine can refer to dogs wolves, foxes, etc. However, there are specific adjectives for these (wolf - lupine; fox - vulpine). By the way the term for these types of words are collateral adjectives. ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/16 "2004-12-10T03:06:24Z")
I’ve found a couple of technical references that use the adjective _rattine_ in this situation (example here: [http://www.exalpha.com/pdfs/X1013.pdf](http://www.exalpha.com/pdfs/X1013.pdf)). It seems to be used in situations where they specifically want to distinguish rat proteins or antibodies from mouse ones…both are important experimental animals and their amount of molecular “relatedness” can impact some molecular biological experiments. While we are on the subject is there a specific adjective to describe something pertaining to weasels or other mustelids? ---
**Author:** ![percypercy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8baadc/32.png) [@percypercy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/percypercy)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/17 "2004-12-10T03:11:55Z")
For Mustelidae, it’s musteline. -Lil ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/18 "2004-12-10T03:17:25Z")
Thanks. I needed the word to describe this guy I know (don’t ask). ---
**Author:** ![Khampelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Khampelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khampelf)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/19 "2004-12-10T03:28:47Z")
What’s wrong with ‘ratty’? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2004, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042/20 "2004-12-10T03:30:03Z")
Adjectives for rats? How about “ratty”? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-animal-adjective-for-rat/279042.md?page=2)