From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpolecatpole‧cat /ˈpəʊlkæt $ ˈpoʊl-/ noun [countable] 1 HBAa small dark brown wild animal that lives in northern Europe and can defend itself by producing a bad smell2 American English informalHBA a skunk
Examples from the Corpus
polecat• Long bodies and short legs are reminders of their close relationship to weasels and polecats.• There will be no polecat with young at post number seven on the nature trail.• Hunting stoats, polecats and weasels are a particular threat to them.• Both the red squirrel and the polecat can be found here.• The white ferret, for example, is more visible, while the polecat is less so.• And then by the time they get their first crack at deducing who the polecat is, they will be in custody.• It is a well-known fact that ferrets have mated with polecats in the wild.Origin polecat (1300-1400) Probably from Old French poul “chicken” + English cat 