desert fox

noun

The fennec.

“For quotations using this term, see Citations:desert fox.”

OriginGerman Wüstenfuchs →
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Meanings

desert fox1

noundesert fox (plural desert foxes)

plural desert foxes

  1. The fennec.
  2. IndiaThe white-footed fox.

    For quotations using this term, see Citations:desert fox.

Desert Fox2

proper nounthe Desert Fox
  1. historicalErwin Rommel (1891–1944), a German field marshal and tank commander during World War II.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
fennec

Origin

  1. GermanWüstenfuchs
  2. EnglishDesert Fox

Possibly a calque of German Wüstenfuchs, in reference to the terrain in which the North African campaign was fought, and the popular conception of the slyness of the fox. Not clear whether it was coined in British or German media first, as the respective term arose in each language near-simultaneously.

More words from German

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

desert fox. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/desert%20fox

MLA

“desert fox.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/desert%20fox. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “desert fox,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/desert%20fox.

Source: desert fox on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.