# gerbil

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈd͡ʒɝbl̩/ · frequency rank #56,771

## Definitions
1. A member of one of several species of small, jumping, mouselike rodents of the subfamily Gerbillinae, native to Africa, India, and Southern Europe.

## Etymology
From French gerbille, from Latin gerbo, from Arabic جَرْبُوع (jarbūʕ) or يَرْبُوع (yarbūʕ, “jerboa”). Doublet of jerboa.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/gerbil