Illustration of hedgehog
- hedgehog 1a
1
a
: any of a subfamily (Erinaceinae) of Eurasian and African nocturnal insectivores that have both hair and spines which they present outwardly by rolling themselves up when threatened
b
: any of several spiny mammals (such as a porcupine)
2
a
: a military defensive obstacle (as of barbed wire)
b
: a well-fortified military stronghold
Did you know?
There are 14 species of hedgehogs. All prefer animal food, such as insects, but will eat plant material. There are nine species of spiny hedgehogs. They have short, barbless spines on the back, a round body, small head, pointed face, and little or no tail, and range from 4 in (10 cm) to 17 in (44 cm) long. Spiny hedgehogs are native to Britain, North Africa, and Asia; one species was introduced into New Zealand. There are five species of hairy hedgehog; all are Asian. They have coarse guard hairs, but no spines and are extremely malodorous. The common hairy hedgehog may be 18 in (46 cm) long and have a 12-in (30 cm) tail.
Examples of hedgehog in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The twins, inexplicably to Lilian even then, kept a hedgehog as a pet, and once—only once—Lilian was invited to visit the hedgehog after school.
—
Yiyun Li, The New Yorker, 9 Mar. 2025
Due to a lack of hedgehogs, the settlers began using another hibernating mammal: the groundhog.
—Julia Gomez, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2025
Smart Obstacle Detection for a Safer Lawn: Genie’s AI vision model, trained on 100,000+ real-world obstacles, precisely recognizes 1,000+ objects, including small animals like hedgehogs, ensuring their safety.
—Chris Gallagher, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2025
The hedgehog’s advantage is to have one core narrative that explains everything, and hammer it with force, whereas the fox knows many things, and can think a few steps ahead.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 20 Mar. 2025
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Yiyun Li, The New Yorker, 9 Mar. 2025
Due to a lack of hedgehogs, the settlers began using another hibernating mammal: the groundhog.
—Julia Gomez, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2025
Smart Obstacle Detection for a Safer Lawn: Genie’s AI vision model, trained on 100,000+ real-world obstacles, precisely recognizes 1,000+ objects, including small animals like hedgehogs, ensuring their safety.
—Chris Gallagher, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2025
The hedgehog’s advantage is to have one core narrative that explains everything, and hammer it with force, whereas the fox knows many things, and can think a few steps ahead.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hedgehog
Cite this Entry
“Hedgehog.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hedgehog. Accessed 19 Apr. 2025.
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