earwig
Any of various insects of the order Dermaptera that have elongated bodies, large…Any of various insects of the order Dermaptera that have elongated bodies, large membranous wings folded underneath short leathery forewings and a pair of large pincers protruding from the rear of the abdomen.
Recorded: Commander Keane, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
» Underneath the cinder block, he found lots of roly-poly bugs and earwigs crawling around.
frpzzd · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
3 sensesAny of various insects of the order Dermaptera that have elongated bodies, large membranous wings folded underneath short leathery forewings and a pair of large pincers protruding from the rear of the abdomen.
Ohrwurm, Ohrenkriecher, Ohrkneifer
уховёрткаuxovjórtka
щи́павкаščýpavka, вухове́рткаvuxovértka
any of numerous insects of the order Dermaptera having elongate bodies and slender many-jointed antennae and a pair of large pincers at the rear of the abdomen
One who whispers insinuations; a secret counsellor.
A flatterer.
Examples
3 sentencesUnderneath the cinder block, he found lots of roly-poly bugs and earwigs crawling around.
When I was little, I was afraid that an earwig would get inside my ear at night.
The earwig gave Jock a scare - he was afraid of insects.
Translations
9 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
By meaning 1
Origin
From Middle English erwigge, from Old English ēarwicga, from ēare (“ear”) + wicga (“insectFrom Middle English erwigge, from Old English ēarwicga, from ēare (“ear”) + wicga (“insect”), so named from the appearance of the hindwings, which are unique in their resemblance to human ears when unfolded.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: earwigsSynonyms
3 synonymsWord family
6 related wordsSee also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.