Standard Lemma guide

burrow

name · noun · verb · 13 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈbʌɹəʊ/
  • US: /ˈbʌɹoʊ/ without the hurry–furry merger
  • US: non-hurry-furry Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • /ˈbɜɹoʊ/ US, hurry–furry merger
  • US: hurry-furry Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Northern-England: /ˈbʊɹəʊ/
  • Northern-England: /-ɹoʊ/
  • Northern-England: /-ɹoː/
  • Northern-England: /-ɹə/
  • Scotland: /ˈbʌɾo/
  • Wales: /ˈbʌɾou/ without the toe–tow merger
  • rhymes with -ʌɹəʊ
  • homophone: borough (one pronunciation)
  • CMU ARPABET: B ER1 OW0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

name

Meaning 1

A surname.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

name

Meaning 2

A place in England:

A hamlet in Broadclyst parish, East Devon district, Devon (OS grid ref SX9997).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

name

Meaning 3

A place in England:

A settlement in Newton Poppleford and Harpford parish, East Devon district, Devon (OS grid ref SY0789).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

name

Meaning 4

A place in England:

A settlement in Kingsbury Episcopi parish, Somerset, which includes Higher Burrow and Lower Burrow (OS grid ref ST4120).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

name

Meaning 5

A place in England:

A hamlet in Wootton Courtenay parish and Timberscombe parish, Somerset (OS grid ref SS9342).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

A tunnel or hole, often as dug by a small creature.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

Obsolete form of barrow (“a mound”).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

Obsolete form of borough (“an incorporated town”).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

verb

Meaning 9

To dig a tunnel or hole.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

verb

Meaning 10

To move underneath or press up against in search of safety or comfort.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • The young girl burrowed into the bed.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

verb

Meaning 11

To investigate thoroughly.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • The journalist burrowed into the origins of the mayor's corruption.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

12

noun

Meaning 12

a hole made by an animal, usually for shelter

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: tunnel

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: hole, hollow

Narrower terms: warren, rabbit warren

13

verb

Meaning 13

move through by or as by digging

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • burrow through the forest

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: tunnel

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: dig, delve, cut into, turn over

History

Etymology

English surname, from the noun borough. Also from the noun burrow and the two senses were often conflated. Compare Burrough, Burgh.

From Middle English borowe, borewe, borwȝ, burȝe, burh, burye (“refuge for an animal, lair, burrow”), apparently a variant of Middle English burgh (“fortified dwelling, stronghold, refuge”) (see borough) and thus from Old English burh, from Proto-West Germanic *burg, from Proto-Germanic *burgz (“stronghold, city”), from Proto-Indo-European *bherǵh- (“high”), but this sense is not known in Old English burh. Compare, however, Dutch cognate burcht, which has a similar sense. It may be related to bury (“to dig”), in which case it would be derived from Proto-Indo-European *bhergh- (“to protect, defend, save, preserve”).

Across languages

Translations

97 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: جُحْر (juḥr) — a tunnel or hole
  • Arabic: سَرَب (sarab) — a tunnel or hole
  • Arabic: دَوْلَج (dawlaj) — a tunnel or hole
  • Belarusian: нара́ (nará) — a tunnel or hole
  • Bulgarian: ду́пка (dúpka) — a tunnel or hole
  • Bulgarian: ду́пка в земя́та (dúpka v zemjáta) — a tunnel or hole
  • Catalan: cau — a tunnel or hole
  • Chinese Mandarin: 地洞 (dìdòng) — a tunnel or hole
  • Czech: nora — a tunnel or hole
  • Old Czech: jězvina — a tunnel or hole
  • Danish: jordhule — a tunnel or hole
  • Dutch: hol — a tunnel or hole
  • Dutch: burcht — a tunnel or hole
  • Esperanto: terkavo — a tunnel or hole
  • Finnish: kolo — a tunnel or hole
  • French: terrier — a tunnel or hole
  • French: clapier — a tunnel or hole
  • Galician: tobo — a tunnel or hole
  • Galician: toco — a tunnel or hole
  • Galician: muraqueira — a tunnel or hole
  • Galician: caustra — a tunnel or hole
  • Galician: paleira — a tunnel or hole
  • Galician: manida — a tunnel or hole
  • Galician: latebra — a tunnel or hole
  • Georgian: სორო (soro) — a tunnel or hole
  • German: Bau — a tunnel or hole
  • Ancient Greek: φωλεός (phōleós) — a tunnel or hole
  • Hebrew: חור (khor) — a tunnel or hole
  • Hebrew: מחילה (mekhilá) — a tunnel or hole
  • Hebrew: מאורה (meurá) — a tunnel or hole
  • Hindi: बिल (bil) — a tunnel or hole
  • Hungarian: lyuk — a tunnel or hole
  • Hungarian: járat — a tunnel or hole
  • Hungarian: üreg — a tunnel or hole
  • Irish: uachais — a tunnel or hole
  • Irish: poll — a tunnel or hole
  • Italian: tana — a tunnel or hole
  • Italian: buca — a tunnel or hole
  • Italian: covo — a tunnel or hole
  • Italian: cunicolo — a tunnel or hole
  • Japanese: 穴 (ana) — a tunnel or hole
  • Japanese: 巣穴 (suana) — a tunnel or hole
  • Kazakh: ін (ın) — a tunnel or hole
  • Khakas: ін (ìn) — a tunnel or hole
  • Korean: 굴 (gul) — a tunnel or hole
  • Korean: 소굴 (sogul) — a tunnel or hole
  • Latin: hola — a tunnel or hole
  • Lithuanian: urvas — a tunnel or hole
  • Lithuanian: ola — a tunnel or hole
  • Macedonian: дупка (dupka) — a tunnel or hole
  • Macedonian: дупка в земјата (dupka v zemjata) — a tunnel or hole
  • Manx: towl — a tunnel or hole
  • Māori: rua — a tunnel or hole
  • Māori: unu — a tunnel or hole
  • Māori: tūrua — a tunnel or hole
  • Ojibwe: waazh — a tunnel or hole
  • Ojibwe: waanzh — a tunnel or hole
  • Polish: jama — a tunnel or hole
  • Polish: nora — a tunnel or hole
  • Polish: tunel — a tunnel or hole
  • Portuguese: túnel — a tunnel or hole
  • Portuguese: toca — a tunnel or hole
  • Romanian: vizuină — a tunnel or hole
  • Russian: нора́ (norá) — a tunnel or hole
  • Serbo-Croatian: јазбина — a tunnel or hole
  • Serbo-Croatian: jazbina — a tunnel or hole
  • Slovak: nora — a tunnel or hole
  • Slovene: jazbina — a tunnel or hole
  • Spanish: madriguera — a tunnel or hole
  • Spanish: ratonera — a tunnel or hole
  • Swedish: gryt — a tunnel or hole
  • Swedish: jordkula — a tunnel or hole
  • Swedish: håla — a tunnel or hole
  • Tagalog: lungga — a tunnel or hole
  • Tarifit: axbuš — a tunnel or hole
  • Thai: รู (ruu) — a tunnel or hole
  • Tibetan: ས་འོག་ཚ་ཁུང (sa 'og tsha khung) — a tunnel or hole
  • Turkish: in — a tunnel or hole
  • Ottoman Turkish: این (in) — a tunnel or hole
  • Ukrainian: нора́ (norá) — a tunnel or hole
  • Vietnamese: hang — a tunnel or hole
  • Welsh: twll — a tunnel or hole
  • Bulgarian: ровя (rovja) — to dig a hole
  • Bulgarian: изравям (izravjam) — to dig a hole
  • Dutch: graven — to dig a hole
  • Dutch: wroeten — to dig a hole
  • Esperanto: fosi — to dig a hole
  • Estonian: tuhnima — to dig a hole
  • Finnish: kaivaa — to dig a hole
  • German: graben — to dig a hole
  • Italian: scavare una tana — to dig a hole
  • Lithuanian: kasti — to dig a hole
  • Māori: apu — to dig a hole
  • Polish: kopać — to dig a hole
  • Portuguese: cavar — to dig a hole
  • Spanish: socavar — to dig a hole
  • Spanish: cavar — to dig a hole
Real reading context

burrow in complete knowledge articles