termite

See also: Termite and térmite

English

termites

Etymology

French termite, which is from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin termites (three syllables), plural of termes.

Also possible a derivation from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Indo-European *term- (“drill”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɜː(ɹ).maɪt/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)maɪt

Noun

termite (plural termites)

1. A white-bodied, wood-consuming insect of the infraorder Isoptera, in the order Blattodea.
   • 1802, Francis William Blagdon, Modern Discoveries; or, a Collection of facts and observations, vol. IV, page 162

     Linnæus describes this insect under the Latin name of Termes; and citizen Cuvier speaks of it under that of Termites. The vulgar call it by that of white ant, or fourmi vaguevague. The termites divide themselves into societies: each society builds itself a next, and each nest belongs to an innumerable quantity of these insects, who acknowledge for their chiefs a king and a queen.

Synonyms

• (white-bodied, wood-consuming insect): termes, white ant

Translations

insect

• Arabic: أَرَضَة f (ʔaraḍa)
• Armenian: տերմիտ (hy) (termit)
• Assamese: উঁই (ũi)
• Banjarese: urup
• Basque: termita
• Bau Bidayuh: tirupuod
• Belarusian: тэрмі́т m (termít)
• Catalan: tèrmit m
• Cebuano: anay
• Central Melanau: belasuwuk
• Chamicuro: ma'lus̈hana
• Chepang: क्र्राः
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 白蟻／白蚁 (zh) (báiyǐ), 白蚁 (zh) (báiyǐ)

• Czech: termit (cs) m
• Danish: termitter c
• Dutch: termiet (nl) m
• Esperanto: termito
• Estonian: termiit
• Finnish: termiitti (fi)
• French: termite (fr) m
• Galician: térmite m
• Georgian: თერმიტი (termiṭi)
• German: Termite (de) f
• Greek: τερμίτες (el) (termítes)
• Hebrew: טרמיט
• Hindi: दीमक (hi) f (dīmak)
• Hungarian: termesz (hu)
• Icelandic: maur (is) m
• Ido: termito (io)
• Ilocano: anay
• Indonesian: rayap (id), anai-anai
• Italian: termite (it) m
• Japanese: シロアリ (ja) (shiro-ari), 白蟻 (ja) (しろあり, shiro-ari)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Javanese: laron (jv)
• Kalagan: anay
• Kannada: ಗೆದ್ದಲು (kn) (geddalu)
• Khmer: កណ្ដៀរ (km) (kɑndiə)
• Kikuyu: mũthũa class 3, nguya class 9/10 (winged)
• Kimaragang: tantanai
• Korean: 흰개미 (huin'gaemi)
• Lubuagan Kalinga: lakoy
• Malagasy: votry (mg)
• Malay: anai-anai, (winged, alate types) kelekatu
• Malayalam: ചിതൽ (ml) (cital)
• Navajo: tsinaʼayąʼii
• Norwegian: termitt m
• Occitan: termit (oc) m, formiga blanca f
• Persian: موریانه (fa)
• Polish: termit (pl) m
• Portuguese: cupim (pt) m, térmite (pt) m
• Romanian: termită (ro) f
• Russian: терми́т (ru) m (termít)
• Slovak: termit m
• Slovene: termit (sl) m
• Spanish: termes (es) m, comején (es) m, termita f
• Sundanese: ᮛᮤᮑᮥᮂ (rinyuh)
• Swahili: mchwa (sw)
• Swedish: termit (sv) c
• Tagal Murut: bubuk
• Tagalog: anay, bukbok
• Tamil: கறையான் (ta) (kaṟaiyāṉ)
• Telugu: చెద (te) (ceda)
• Thai: ปลวก (bplùuak)
• Ukrainian: термі́т m (termít)
• Vietnamese: mối (vi)
• Volapük: tärmit
• West Coast Bajau: anei-anei
• Wolof: max mi (wo)

Verb

1. (intransitive) Of a chimpanzee: to catch termites by inserting a stick or vine into their nest and waiting for them to climb up it.

Further reading

• termite on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• emitter

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French

Etymology

Back-formation from termites. From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Late Latin termites (plural of termes), late variant of the Classical (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin tarmes (“woodworm”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɛʁ.mit/

Noun

termite m or f (plural termites)

1. termite (white-bodied, wood-consuming insect)
   • 1798, Georges Cuvier, Tableau élémentaire de l'histoire naturelle des animaux, page 479

     Les termites parfaits ont le corps et la tête applatis horizontalement ; trois articles à tous les doigts. Leurs antennes, en forme de chapelet, les distinguent assez des autres genres de cet ordre. […]
     1. Le termite belliqueux. (Termes fatale.)
     Est l'espèce la plus grande et la plus commune. […]
     2. Le termite atroce. (Termes arda.)
     Noir, à pieds pâles, et
     3. Le termite mordant. (Termes mordax.)
     Noir, à pieds de même couleur.

Usage notes

While most dictionaries give termite has masculine, it is commonly used as a feminine noun, due to the ending -ite.

Synonyms

• fourmi blanche

Further reading

• “termite”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

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Italian

Etymology

From Late Latin termes, termitēs.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɛr.mi.te/

Noun

termite m (plural termiti)

1. termite (white-bodied, wood-consuming insect)

Anagrams

• rimette, temerti

Further reading

• termite in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

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Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈter.mi.te/, [ˈt̪ɛrmɪt̪ɛ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈter.mi.te/, [ˈt̪ɛrmit̪e]

Noun

(deprecated template usage) termite m

1. ablative singular of termes