Adjacent Words

mosquito definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: two-winged insect whose female has a long proboscis to pierce the skin and suck the blood of humans and animals

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural -toes; also -tos) Etymology: Spanish, diminutive of mosca fly, from Latin musca — more at midge Date: circa 1583 any of a family (Culicidae) of dipteran flies with females that have a set of slender organs in the proboscis adapted to puncture the skin of animals and to suck their blood and that are in some cases vectors of serious diseases • mosquitoey adjective

Britannica Concise

Any of 2,500 dipteran species in the family Culicidae. The females of most species require a blood meal to mature their eggs. Through bloodsucking, females of various species (genera Aedes, Anopheles, and Culex) transmit human diseases, incl. dengue fever, encephalitis, filariasis, malaria, yellow fever, and elephantiasis. The adult has a long proboscis, a slender, elongated body, and long, fragile legs. The males (and sometimes the females) feed on plant juices. The female's characteristic sound is made by the vibration of thin membranes on the thorax. The females lay their eggs on the surface of a body of usually stagnant water, and the eggs hatch into aquatic larvae (wrigglers). In the far north larvae pass the winter frozen into ice. The wrigglers are eaten by fishes and aquatic insects, the adults by birds and dragonflies. Control measures have included elimination of breeding sites, application of surface films of oil to clog the larvae's breathing tubes, and use of larvicides.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. -oes) any of various slender biting insects, esp. of the genus Culex, Anopheles, or Aedes, the female of which punctures the skin of humans and other animals with a long proboscis to suck their blood and transmits diseases such as filariasis and malaria. Phrases and idioms: mosquito-boat US a motor torpedo-boat. mosquito-net a net to keep off mosquitoes. Etymology: Sp. & Port., dimin. of mosca f. L musca fly

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Mosquito Mos*qui"to, n.; pl. Mosquitoes. [Sp. mosquito, fr. moscafly, L. musca. Cf. Musket.] (Zo["o]l.) Any one of various species of gnats of the genus Culex and allied genera. The females have a proboscis containing, within the sheathlike labium, six fine, sharp, needlelike organs with which they puncture the skin of man and animals to suck the blood. These bites, when numerous, cause, in many persons, considerable irritation and swelling, with some pain. The larv[ae] and pup[ae], called wigglers, are aquatic. [Written also musquito.] Mosquito bar, Mosquito net, a net or curtain for excluding mosquitoes, -- used for beds and windows. Mosquito fleet, a fleet of small vessels. Mosquito hawk (Zo["o]l.), a dragon fly; -- so called because it captures and feeds upon mosquitoes. Mosquito netting, a loosely-woven gauzelike fabric for making mosquito bars.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(mosquitoes, or mosquitos) Mosquitos are small flying insects which bite people and animals in order to suck their blood. N-COUNT

Foolish Dictionary

A small insect designed by God to make us think better of flies.