Meanings
wolverine1
plural wolverines · alternative wolverene · alternative obsolete wolvering
- A solitary, fierce mammal of the Mustelidae family, Gulo gulo.
“Wish I'd been more polite to that girl,” the sheriff remarked regretfully. “I ain't had a bite to eat since four o'clock this morning, and I'm hungry as a wolverine. … I know she'd have give me another drink of that old moonshine she has.”
1920, Peter B. Kyne, chapter IV, in The Understanding HeartSynonyms: carcajou, skunkbear, glutton, quickhatch, beaver eater
Wolverine2
plural Wolverines
- A native or resident of the American state of Michigan.
[The term "Sucker" is] The cognomen of the Illinoians, answering to the Buckeye of Ohio, the Wolverine of Michigan, the Corn-cracker of Kentucky, &c.
1846, Eliza Wood Farnham, Life in Prairie Land, page 63Synonyms: Michigander
- Someone associated with the University of Michigan, for example as a student, alum, or sports team member, or as a fan.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA solitary, fierce mammal of the Mustelidae family, Gulo gulo.
nounA native or resident of the American state of Michigan.
More synonyms by meaning
nounmusteline mammal of northern Eurasia
nounstocky shaggy-coated North American carnivorous mammal
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
wolverine · noun
1619; alteration of earlier wolvering (1574), diminutive of wolver (“ravenous or savage animal; person who behaves like a wolf”) (1593), ultimately from wolf.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic شَرِه, وُلْفِيرِين
- شَرِه (šarih)Gulo gulo
- وُلْفِيرِين (wulfīrīn)Gulo gulo
Bulgarian росома́ха, ла́комец
- росома́ха (rosomáha)Gulo gulo
- ла́комец (lákomec)Gulo gulo
Catalan golut
- golutGulo gulo
Chinese Mandarin 狼獾, 貂熊
- 狼獾 (lánghuān)Gulo gulo
- 貂熊 (diāoxióng)Gulo gulo
Czech rosomák
- rosomákGulo gulo
Danish jærv
- jærvGulo gulo
Dutch veelvraat
- veelvraatGulo gulo
Esperanto gulo
- guloGulo gulo
Estonian ahm, kaljukass
- ahmGulo gulo
- kaljukassGulo gulo
Finnish ahma
- ahmaGulo gulo
French glouton, carcajou
- gloutonGulo gulo
- carcajouGulo gulo
German Vielfraß, Bärenmarder
- VielfraßGulo gulo
- BärenmarderGulo gulo
Greek γούλβεριν
- γούλβεριν (goúlverin)Gulo gulo
Hawaiian woleweline
- wolewelineGulo gulo
Hebrew גַּרְגְּרָן
- גַּרְגְּרָן (garg'rán)Gulo gulo
Hungarian rozsomák
- rozsomákGulo gulo
Icelandic jarfi
- jarfiGulo gulo
Irish glutan
- glutanGulo gulo
Italian ghiottone, volverina
- ghiottoneGulo gulo
- volverinaGulo gulo
- ossifragaGulo gulo
Japanese クズリ, 貂熊
- クズリ (kuzuri)Gulo gulo
- 貂熊Gulo gulo
- 屈狸Gulo gulo
Korean 울버린
- 울버린 (ulbeorin)Gulo gulo
Latvian āmrija, tinis
- āmrijaGulo gulo
- tinisGulo gulo
Lithuanian ernis
- ernisGulo gulo
Malay wolverin
- wolverinGulo gulo
Norwegian jerv
- jervGulo gulo
Persian ولورین
- ولورین (volverin)Gulo gulo
Polish rosomak
- rosomakGulo gulo
Portuguese carcaju, glutão
- carcajuGulo gulo
- glutãoGulo gulo
Romanian polifag american, gluton
- polifag americanGulo gulo
- glutonGulo gulo
Russian росома́ха
- росома́ха (rosomáxa)Gulo gulo
Slovak rosomák
- rosomákGulo gulo
Spanish glotón, carcayú
- glotónGulo gulo
- carcayúGulo gulo
Swahili fisi-milima, wolverini
- fisi-milimaGulo gulo
- wolveriniGulo gulo
Swedish järv
- järvGulo gulo
Thai วุลเวอรีน
- วุลเวอรีน (wunwer-reen)Gulo gulo
Turkish kutup porsuğu, ayı sansarı
- kutup porsuğuGulo gulo
- ayı sansarıGulo gulo
Ukrainian росома́ха
- росома́ха (rosomáxa)Gulo gulo
Vietnamese chồn Gulo
- chồn GuloGulo gulo
Cite this entry
wolverine. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wolverine
“wolverine.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wolverine. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “wolverine,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wolverine.
Source: wolverine on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.