flittermouse

[ flit-er-mous ]

/ ˈflɪt ərˌmaʊs /

bat²(def 1).

Origin of flittermouse

1540–50; flitter¹ + mouse; calque of German Fledermaus

flitch beam, flitchplate, flite, fliting, flitter, flittermouse, flivver, flo, float, float bowl, float bridge

One of the strangest things about the flittermouse is its voice.

Everyday Adventures |Samuel Scoville
Over all the jackdaws chime and chatter, for it is their home now, and they share it with the owl and the flittermouse.

A West Country Pilgrimage |Eden Phillpots
Coming out of the candle-light, I blinked like a flittermouse.

Back o' the Moon |Oliver Onions
Indeed, as he spoke a flittermouse scurried through the air within a foot of her ear.

Castle Craneycrow |George Barr McCutcheon

Flittermouse in a rage went straight to the constable and denounced his patron as a sheep-stealer.

A Shepherd's Life |W. H. Hudson

flittermouse

/ (ˈflɪtəˌmaʊs) /

a dialect name for bat 2 (def. 1)

C16: translation of German Fledermaus; see flitter, mouse