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Definition of 'flea'

noun

Any wingless bloodsucking parasitic insect noted for ability to leap

From: GCIDE

Flea \Flea\ (fl[=e]), v. t. [See Flay.] To flay. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]
He will be fleaed first And horse collars made of's skin. --J. Fletcher. [1913 Webster]

From: GCIDE

Flea \Flea\, n. [OE. fle, flee, AS. fle['a], fle['a]h; akin to D. vtoo, OHG. fl[=o]h, G. floh, Icel. fl[=o], Russ. blocha; prob. from the root of E. flee. [root]84. See Flee.] (Zool.) An insect belonging to the genus Pulex, of the order Aphaniptera. Fleas are destitute of wings, but have the power of leaping energetically. The bite is poisonous to most persons. The human flea (Pulex irritans), abundant in Europe, is rare in America, where the dog flea (Ctenocephalides canis, formerly Pulex canis) and the smaller cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis) take its place. See Aphaniptera, and Dog flea. See Illustration in Appendix. [1913 Webster]
A flea in the ear, an unwelcome hint or unexpected reply, annoying like a flea; an irritating repulse; as, to put a flea in one's ear; to go away with a flea in one's ear.
Beach flea, Black flea, etc. See under Beach, etc. [1913 Webster]

Flea David at the cave of Adullam thus addressed his persecutor Saul (1 Sam. 24:14): "After whom is the king of Israel come out? after whom dost thou pursue? after a dead dog, after a flea?" He thus speaks of himself as the poor, contemptible object of the monarch's pursuit, a "worthy object truly for an expedition of the king of Israel with his picked troops!" This insect is in Eastern language the popular emblem of insignificance. In 1 Sam. 26:20 the LXX. read "come out to seek my life" instead of "to seek a flea."