Definition of "rut" []

• A sunken track or groove made by the passage of vehicles. (noun)
• A fixed, usually boring routine. (noun)
• To furrow. (verb-transitive)
• An annually recurring condition or period of sexual excitement and reproductive activity in male deer. (noun)
• A condition or period of mammalian sexual activity, such as estrus. (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.

• "Here in west central indiana the deer arnt very active yet and there arnt many corn fields that have been picked yet but its gettn cooler and the rut is about a week off so im huntin feild edges the deer gotta leave the corn sometime there aint no ponds or cricks in the feilds to drink from"
• "Across much of whitetail range, the rut is a scant few weeks away."
• "As I noted last week, the rut is a fading flower across much of whitetail range, and recent severe winter weather will put food at the top of the whitetail list of basic needs now."