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insect

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: Insect

English

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Middle French insecte, from Latin īnsectum, from īnsectus (“cut into, cut up, with a notched or divided body”), from perfect passive participle of īnsecō (“to cut into, to cut up”), from in- + secō (“to cut”), from the notion that the insect's body is "cut into" three sections (head, thorax, abdomen). Calque of Ancient Greek ἔντομον (éntomon, “insect”), from ἔντομος (éntomos, “cut into pieces”).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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insect (plural insects)

  2. An arthropod (in the Insecta class) characterized by six legs, up to four wings, and a chitinous exoskeleton.
    Hypernyms: arthropod < bug (broad sense) < invertebrate < animal < creature, critter
    Hyponyms: bug (precise sense), true bug; many more at Thesaurus:insect
    Coordinate terms: arachnid, spider
    Our shed has several insect infestations, including ants, yellowjackets, and wasps.
    • 2013 May-June, William E. Conner, “An Acoustic Arms Race”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, pages 206–7:
      Nonetheless, some insect prey take advantage of clutter by hiding in it. Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close (less than half a meter) above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them.
  3. (archaic or loosely) Any small, creeping, crawling, or slithering animal, excluding mammals, birds, and fish.
    • 1756, Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary Of The English Language: In Which The Words are Deduced from Their Originals, And Illustrated in Their Different Significations By Examples from the Best Writers, To Which Are Prefixed, A History of the Language, And An English Grammar : In Two Volumes, Volume 2, Knapton:
      Ambroſe Parey has a picture of the ſalamander, with a receipt for her bite; but there is no ſuch creature, the name being now given to a poor harmleſs inſect.
    1. (specifically) An arthropod or invertebrate.
      • 1777, The critical review, or annals of literature, Volume 44, page 158:
        The learned zoologiſt of our country concludes his labours in this ſcience by the preſent publication, which contains only cruſtaceous inſects, viz. crabs and lobſters, worms and ſhells.
      • 1832, Noah Webster, A Dictionary of the English Language: Intended to Exhibit: I. The Origin and the Affinities of Every English Word ... II. The Orthography and the Pronunciation of Words ... III. Accurate and Discriminating Definitions of Technical and Scientific Terms ... To which are Prefixed an Introductory Dissertation on the Origin, History, and Connection of the Languages of Western Asia and of Europe and a Concise Grammar, Philosophical and Practical, of the English Language, Volume 2, Black, Young, and Young, page 3:
        A slimy slow creeping animal, of the genus Helix, and order of Mollusca. The eyes of this insect are in the horns, one at the end of each, which it can retract at pleasure.
  4. (derogatory) A contemptible or powerless person.
    The manager’s assistant was the worst sort of insect.

Synonyms

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  • bug (colloquial)

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • → Burmese: အင်းဆက် (ang:hcak)

Translations

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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

See also

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Further reading

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Anagrams

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Dutch

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Dutch Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia nl

Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Originally having a wider meaning (sense 2), as in Aristotle. From Latin īnsectum (“bug; cut up”), from īnsecō (“to cut up into”). The Latin is a calque of Ancient Greek ἔντομον (éntomon, “bug”), from ἔντομος (éntomos).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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insect n (plural insecten, diminutive insectje n)

  1. insect, arthropod of the class Insecta
    Synonyms: gekorven dier, kerfdier
  2. (now uncommon) bug (any small arthropod or invertebrate that somewhat resembles an insect)
    Synonym: gekorven dier

Derived terms

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Descendants

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