otter

/ˈɑdər/

/ˈɒtə/

Other forms: otters

Otters are mammals that live in and near the water. If you're lucky enough to see a group of these animals together, you can refer to them as a "romp of otters."

In North America, otters can be found in parts of the Pacific Ocean and in rivers all across the continent. But otters aren't as common as they once were — many otter species are considered endangered today: they were hunted for their fur when settlers first came to North America, and since then they have been threatened by pollution and climate change. The root of the word otter, appropriately enough, means "water creature."

Definitions of otter

1. noun

   freshwater carnivorous mammal having webbed and clawed feet and dark brown fur
   types:

   Lutra canadensis, river otter

   sociable aquatic animal widely distributed along streams and lake borders in North America

   Eurasian otter, Lutra lutra

   otter found in Europe and Asia

   type of:

   mustelid, musteline, musteline mammal

   fissiped fur-bearing carnivorous mammals
2. noun

   the fur of an otter
   type of:

   fur, pelt

   the dressed hairy coat of a mammal