From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishlemminglem‧ming /ˈlemɪŋ/ noun [countable] HBAa small animal that looks like a rat. Lemmings are known for following each other in large numbers and killing themselves by jumping off cliffs into the sea.
Examples from the Corpus
lemming• Coniferous forests, often hunting by day for mammals as large as squirrels and lemmings.• The tundra is widely grazed by mammals, especially voles and lemmings that burrow in the undergrowth.• His shoulders were shaking, and tears were scrambling down his crumpled cheeks like lemmings.• John Giacobbi sums it up quite nicely when he portrays the average A&Rs as narrow-minded lemmings worried about job security.• I once saw a cartoon which pictured hundreds of lemmings throwing themselves off a cliff and drowning in the water below.• Tundra and high northern moorland, feeding mainly on lemmings and birds the size of Ptarmigan and Oystercatcher.• Investors are not children or lemmings.Origin lemming (1700-1800) Norwegian 