Word.ws English Dictionary

squirreling

squirreling is the present participle and gerund of squirrel.

Noun

squirreling (uncountable)

  1. The storing of something when in abundance against a time when it will be scarce (after the manner of a squirrel)
  2. (derogatory, often) The application of L. Ron Hubbard's technology in a heterodox manner.

Meaning of squirrel

Verb

squirrel (third-person singular simple present squirrels, present participle (US) squirreling or (UK) squirrelling, simple past and past participle (US) squirreled or (UK) squirrelled)

  1. (figuratively, transitive) To store in a secretive manner, to hide something for future use.
  2. (figuratively, intransitive) To become distracted.

See all 7 meanings of squirrel

Phrases with squirreling

Questions about squirreling

What does squirreling mean?
Squirreling means the storing of something when in abundance against a time when it will be scarce (after the manner of a squirrel).
What is squirreling the present participle and gerund of?
Squirreling is the present participle and gerund of squirrel.
What part of speech is squirreling?
Squirreling is a noun.

Words near squirreling in the dictionary

  1. squirrelfishes
  2. squirrelian
  3. squirreline
  4. squirreliness
  5. squirrelinesses
  6. squirreling
  7. squirreling around
  8. squirreling away
  9. squirrelish
  10. squirrelled
  11. squirrelled around

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: squirreling (page history and authors); squirrel (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “squirreling.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/squirreling. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.