World Languages Lexicon
10 Language-to-English DictionariesFurball
/ˈfɜːr.bɔːl/Comprehensive Definitions & Senses
2 senses- 1
A small ball of fur or hair that accumulates in the digestive tract of a cat or other grooming animal as a result of licking its coat.
"My cat coughed up a furball on the living room rug this morning." - 2
An affectionate or playful term for a hairy or fluffy animal, especially a pet dog or cat.
"Come here, you little furball, time for your bath!"
Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum
Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology
The word is a compound of 'fur' (from Old French 'fourrer') and 'ball' (from Old English 'beallu'). It emerged in informal mid-20th-century American English, initially describing a compact mass of hair swallowed by animals during grooming, and later extended as an affectionate or humorous term for a hairy pet.
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10 Global Lexicons: How "Furball" is said worldwide
Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration
boule de poils
Transliteration: bul də pwol
"Le chat a craché une boule de poils."
Haarballen
Transliteration: ˈhaːɐ̯ˌbalən
"Die Katze hat einen Haarballen erbrochen."
palla di pelo
Transliteration: ˈpalla di ˈpelo
"Il gatto ha vomitato una palla di pelo."
bola de pelo
Transliteration: ˈbola de ˈpelo
"El gato expulsó una bola de pelo."
bola de pelo
Transliteration: ˈbɔlɐ dɨ ˈpɛlu
"O gato vomitou uma bola de pelo."
बालों का गोला
Transliteration: baalon ka gola
"बिल्ली ने बालों का गोला उगला।"
毛球
Transliteration: máo qiú
"猫吐出了一个毛球。"
헤어볼
Transliteration: he-eo-bol
"고양이가 헤어볼을 토해냈습니다."
毛玉
Transliteration: kedama
"猫が毛玉を吐き出しました。"
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