Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Polecat \Pole"cat`\, n. [Probably fr. F. poule hen, and
   originally, a poultry cat, because it feeds on poultry. See
   {Poultry}.] (Zo["o]l.)
   (a) A small European carnivore of the Weasel family
       ({Putorius f[oe]tidus}). Its scent glands secrete a
       substance of an exceedingly disagreeable odor. Called
       also {fitchet}, {foulmart}, and {European ferret}.
   (b) The zorilla. The name is also applied to other allied
       species.

Source : WordNet®

polecat
     n 1: American musteline mammal typically ejecting an intensely
          malodorous fluid when startled; in some classifications
          put in a separate subfamily Mephitinae [syn: {skunk}, {wood
          pussy}]
     2: dark brown mustelid of woodlands of Eurasia that gives off
        an unpleasant odor when threatened [syn: {fitch}, {foulmart},
         {foumart}, {Mustela putorius}]