# porcupine

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈpɔː(ɹ)kjʊˌpaɪn/ · frequency rank #33,797

## Definitions
1. Any of several rodents of either of the taxonomic families Hystricidae (Old World porcupines) or Erethizontidae (New World porcupines), both from the infraorder Hystricognathi, noted for their sharp spines or quills, which are raised when the animal is attacked or surprised.

## Etymology
From Middle English porke despyne, from Old French porc-espin, from Latin porcus (“pig”) + spinus (“spine”), hence also spine pig. Cognate with Spanish puercoespín, Italian porcospino, Portuguese porco-espinho.

## Common misspellings (13)
`oprcupine`, `pocrupine`, `porccupine`, `porcpuine`, `porcuipne`, `porcupien`, `porcupinne`, `porcupnie`, `porcuppine`, `porrcupine`, `porucpine`, `pporcupine`, `procupine`

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