Mice is the plural of mouse, meaning more than one of these small, furry rodents with pointed noses, round ears, and long thin tails. A single mouse might scurry across a barn floor, but mice can travel in groups, squeaking and exploring together.

Mice have lived alongside humans for thousands of years, often uninvited. They're incredibly adaptable creatures: where people store grain or food, mice usually find a way in. Their sharp teeth never stop growing, so they gnaw constantly on wood, cardboard, and even electrical wires. While some people keep fancy mice as pets (they can be quite friendly and intelligent), wild mice in your house are usually unwelcome guests.

Scientists use laboratory mice extensively in research because mice and humans share surprisingly similar biology. Medical breakthroughs often begin with studies using mice.

The word mice also refers to multiple computer pointing devices. You might say “the computer lab has twenty mice” (though some people say “mouses” for the computer kind). Like the animals they're named after, computer mice are small, quick, and seem to go everywhere your hand guides them.