a. and sb. [ad. L. leporīnus, f. lepor-, lepus hare: see -INE.]
A. adj. Pertaining to a hare or hares; of the nature or form of a hare; lagomorphic.
† Leporine seal: perh. Phoca barbata (Fabr.).
1656. Blount, Glossogr., Leporine, of or pertaining to an Hare.
1781. Pennant, Hist. Quadrupeds, II. 523. Leporine Seal, Phoca Leporina … S[eal] with fur, soft as that of a hare, upright and interwoven.
1855. Mayne, Expos. Lex., Leporinus, hare-like; leporine; but chiefly applied to denote resemblance to the mouth of the hare.
1877. Coues & Allen, N. Amer. Rodentia, 44. The large, leporine, grooved-incisor species of South America.
B. sb. = LEPORIDE.
1862. Melbourne Leader, 13 Sept., 13. The bill of fare included … leporine, which is betwixt hare and rabbit.
