Definition of "spermophile" [sper•mo•phile]

• The ground squirrel. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "In the Middle West, especially in Indiana, the little spermophile, sometimes called the ground-squirrel, is common and not afraid to venture into the outskirts of a village."
• "But for the poor spermophile nothing I could do in the way of revival was of any avail."
• "Every boy and girl loves the little fairy, airy striped chipmunk, half squirrel, half spermophile."