Dictionary
o•pos•sum
Pronunciation: (u-pos'um, pos'um), [key]—
n.,
—pl. -sums, (esp. collectively) -sum.
1. a prehensile-tailed marsupial,
Didelphis virginiana, of the eastern U.S., the female having an abdominal pouch in which its young are carried: noted for the habit of feigning death when in danger.
2. any of various animals of related genera.Cf.
possum.Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.