Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Any of various small clawed monkeys of the genera Callithrix and Cebuella, found in tropical forests of the Americas and having soft dense fur, tufted ears, and long tails.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A little ape or monkey.
- n. Now, specifically, a small squirrel-like South American monkey of the family Hapalidæ, or Mididæ (which see for technical characters). There are numerous species, referred to two leading genera, Hapale and Midas, and known by many names, as squirrel-monkeys, oustitis, tamarins, etc. They are the smallest of the monkey tribe, ranging from a few inches to a foot in length, with a long, bushy, non-prehensile tail, and thick, soft, silky or woolly fur, in some species lengthened into conspicuous ear-tufts or a kind of mane. The coloration is extremely variable. The thumb of the hand is not opposable, but the inner toe of the hind foot serves as a thumb, and has a flat nail, all the other digits of both extremities being armed with sharp claws of great service in climbing. Marmosets are confined to tropical America, having their center of abundance in northern South America; they live in the woods, and feed chiefly upon insects. They are extremely sensitive to cold, but with proper care may be kept in confinement, and make amusing pets, though their intelligence is low. Characteristic examples are the common black-eared marmoset, Hapale jacchus, and the marakina or tamarin, Midas rosalia. See cut under
Hapale . - n. An ugly little fellow; a conceited “puppy.”
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of small South American monkeys of the genera Hapale and Midas, family
Hapalidæ . They have long soft fur, and a hairy, nonprehensile tail. They are often kept as pets. Called alsosquirrel monkey .
WordNet 3.0
- n. small soft-furred South American and Central American monkey with claws instead of nails
Etymologies
- From Middle French marmouset ("gargoyle; small child"), probably from marmouser ("to mumble"). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English marmusette, a kind of small monkey, from Old French marmouset, grotesque figurine, alteration (influenced by marmouser, to murmur) of marmotte, marmot; see marmot. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Each individual marmoset is an amalgam of cells from two different marmosets.”
“It may look as if a male marmoset is fathering baby marmosets, but he may actually just be their uncle ....”
“Something I read recently, I can't remember what, reminded me of marmosets and my favorite poem with the word marmoset in it.”
“After all, it’s hard to argue that a flour-encrusted marmoset is any stranger than, say, kapparot.”
“There are also tamarins, the difference between a tamarin and a marmoset is the location of their teeth.”
“Category: Carol Shea-Porter, death of irony, frank guinta, meet the new boss, new hampshire, tasered marmoset”
Meet New Boss Rep Shea-Porter (D, NH). - Moe_Lane’s blog - RedState
“The monkey was identified as a 7-week-old marmoset.”
“In an interview with The News & Advance newspaper of Lynchburg, the woman says the marmoset is 7 weeks old and requires constant attention.”
“It begins: “Over in the jungle/Where the trees greet the sun/Lived a mother marmoset/And her marmoset one.””
Children’s Poems About Rainforests and Their Creatures « One-Minute Book Reviews
“Consider the mongoose, the marmoset as my gift from another world to you”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘marmoset’.
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See cut under
A list of words with definitions directing us to "see cut under" (or "see cut at") another definition (with hilarity occasionally ensuing).
Compare compare-cut-under.spider, scorpion, spoonbill, spur, tooth, feather, gnat, beard, gyrate, astragal, jog, countercheck and 92 more...
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Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 11184 more...
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Recently viewed
A random list of things people are looking up on Wordnik.
craftsperson, bobble-head, kiwi and emu brot..., st. isidore the f..., cloudlessness, sangwidges, omnes Una Manet nox, Chappie, Inca dove, ew, C'mere, skepticism and 966 more...
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primates
big ones,small ones,as many as
I can findangwantibo, babacoote, baboon, bandar, bandari, bobbejaan, bonobo, bushbaby, cebid, ceboid, chacma, chimp and 102 more...
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Technical characters
Being a list of words with "technical characters" in their definitions.
skunk, badger, cormorant, kangaroo, diodontoidea, serpent, stork, mole, opossum, crow, pigeon, toucan and 14 more...
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Animals (besides pottos)
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robin, wagtail, frog, bunny, pronk, rabbit, fur, badger, mouse, bee, crepuscular, purr and 140 more...
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Words Covered in Faery Dust (M)
words that evoke magic, mystery, mayhem, magnificence or anything else that glimmers in the grass
mace, macintosh, madras, magenta, magic 8 ball, magma, mahogany, maiden, mail, mainsail, maize, malachite and 169 more...
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wunderkammer's Words
smarmy, bubkes, elucidate, togs, aeolian, carp, kibosh, bosky, ramshackle, mange, harpy, effervesce and 163 more...
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tranquill's Words
loquacious, unmitigated, trundle, ephemeral, vociferous, trapezoidal, liminal, obsequious, veracity, squash, onomatopoeia, oscillate and 267 more...
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Fun Words
Words that have funny meanings or are just fun to say.
kumquat, chimichanga, sarsparilla, rutabaga, rumpus, flummox, encrusted, prestidigitation, pomegranate, preposterous, dentiloquist, sepulchre and 323 more...
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TimV's list
porpoise, marmoset, philatelist, porcine, percolator, caustic, zesty, sousaphone, burka
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The Amulet of Samarkand
Words and phrases from Jonathan Stroud's The Amulet of Samarkand.
flunky, provenance, pare, rabbit in a covert, short shrift, bunker, trainers, tatty, lob, injunction, doss, bluster and 193 more...
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uncleosbert's Words
omphalaskepsis, gravid, steatopygian, marmalade, triffid, scurrilous, kith, lilliputian, slunk, snailular, milquetoast, elephantine and 191 more...
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2007bee-r03
antioxidant, rambla, trafficking, volplane, sluice, jettison, insomnolence, egyptiac, claque, provincial, satisfice, trumpery and 95 more...
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What's next here?
thunderhead, thundercloud, cumulus, cumulonimbus, fibrous, hazy, glaciated, cirrus, nimbus, meteorology, fahrenheit, thermoscope and 285 more...
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Animals With Nifty Names
hamster, gerbil, ferret, horse, skink, newt, shark, octopus, weasel, panda, giraffe, hyena and 129 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for marmoset.

trivet Llama song... Nov 25, 2008
chained_bear ... because it's hilarious?
*wonders if that was a trick question* Nov 25, 2008
bilby *Pops an Easily Amused Club membership badge in the mail* Nov 25, 2008
Prolagus The marmoset song. Why did such a thing make me split my sides laughing? Nov 25, 2008