'Insect' definitions:
Definition of 'insect'
From: WordNet
Definition of 'Insect'
From: GCIDE
- Insect \In"sect\ ([i^]n"s[e^]kt), n. [F. insecte, L. insectum, fr. insectus, p. p. of insecare to cut in. See Section. The name was originally given to certain small animals, whose bodies appear cut in, or almost divided. Cf. Entomology.]
- 1. (Zool.) One of the Insecta; esp., one of the Hexapoda. See Insecta. [1913 Webster]
- Note: The hexapod insects pass through three stages during their growth, viz., the larva, pupa, and imago or adult, but in some of the orders the larva differs little from the imago, except in lacking wings, and the active pupa is very much like the larva, except in having rudiments of wings. In the higher orders, the larva is usually a grub, maggot, or caterpillar, totally unlike the adult, while the pupa is very different from both larva and imago and is inactive, taking no food. [1913 Webster]
- 2. (Zool.) Any air-breathing arthropod, as a spider or scorpion. [1913 Webster]
- 3. (Zool.) Any small crustacean. In a wider sense, the word is often loosely applied to various small invertebrates. [1913 Webster]
- 4. Fig.: Any small, trivial, or contemptible person or thing. --Thomson. [1913 Webster]
- Insect powder,a powder used for the extermination of insects; esp., the powdered flowers of certain species of Pyrethrum, a genus now merged in Chrysanthemum. Called also Persian powder. [1913 Webster]
Definition of 'Insect'
From: GCIDE
- Insect \In"sect\, a.
- 1. Of or pertaining to an insect or insects. [1913 Webster]
- 2. Like an insect; small; mean; ephemeral. [1913 Webster]
Synonyms of 'insect'
From: Moby Thesaurus
- animal,
- ant,
- aphid,
- aphis,
- arachnid,
- arthropod,
- assassin bug,
- beast,
- bedbug,
- bee,
- beetle,
- bluebottle,
- borer,
- bug,
- butterfly,
- caddis fly,
- caterpillar,
- centipede,
- chafer,
- chigoe,
- chilopod,
- Chilopoda,
- Chordata,
- cicada,
- cicala,
- cockchafer,
- cockroach,
- crane fly,
- cricket,
- cucumber flea beetle,
- cur,
- curculio,
- daddy longlegs,
- damselfly,
- deer fly,
- diplopod,
- dobson fly,
- dog,
- dragonfly,
- drosophila,
- dung beetle,
- earwig,
- Echiuroidea,
- Ectoprocta,
- Entoprocta,
- ephemerid,
- firefly,
- flea,
- fly,
- gadfly,
- glowworm,
- gnat,
- grain weevil,
- grasshopper,
- harvestman,
- hexapod,
- hornet,
- hound,
- hyena,
- jigger,
- katydid,
- kissing bug,
- lacewing,
- lady beetle,
- ladybird,
- ladybug,
- lantern fly,
- larva,
- Lepisma,
- locust,
- louse,
- maggot,
- mantis,
- mayfly,
- mealworm,
- midge,
- millepede,
- miller,
- millipede,
- mite,
- mole cricket,
- mongrel,
- Monoplacophora,
- mosquito,
- moth,
- Nemertinea,
- nymph,
- Phoronidea,
- pig,
- polecat,
- reptile,
- rice weevil,
- roach,
- scarab,
- scorpion,
- serpent,
- silverfish,
- skunk,
- snake,
- spider,
- springtail,
- squash bug,
- stag beetle,
- stinkbug,
- stone fly,
- swine,
- syrphus fly,
- tarantula,
- termite,
- tick,
- tiger moth,
- tsetse fly,
- tumblebug,
- varmint,
- vermin,
- viper,
- walkingstick,
- wasp,
- water bug,
- weevil,
- whelp,
- wood tick,
- worm,
- yellow jacket
Words containing 'Insect'
- Insectation,
- Insectator,
- Insected,
- Insection,
- Froth insect,
- Gall insect,
- Insect powder,
- Itch insect,
- Leaf insect,
- Mange insect,
- Manna insect,
- Praying insect,
- Scale insect,
- Snow insect,
- Spittle insect,
- Stick insect,
- Wax insect,
- boat insect,
- coccid insect,
- cochineal insect,
- coral insects,
- dictyopterous insect,
- dipterous insect,
- hemipterous insect,
- heteropterous insect,
- homopterous insect,
- hymenopterous insect,
- insect bite,
- insect repellant,
- insect repellent,
- lepidopterous insect,
- neuropterous insect,
- orthopterous insect,
- phasmid insect,
- psocopterous insect,
- social insect,
- thysanopterous insect,
- thysanuran insect,
- trichopterous insect,
- two-winged insects