weevil

/'wi:vil/

Thân thiện

A weevil is crawling on a green leaf.

Definition

Noun 1. A small beetle that damages plants and stored grains: A weevil is a type of beetle, typically small, characterized by a distinctive elongated snout. Many species are significant agricultural pests, feeding on and destroying living plants, seeds, nuts, and stored products like grain and flour.

Examples

• The farmer was concerned about the weevil infestation in his cotton crop.
• Storing rice in airtight containers helps prevent weevil damage.
• The museum's entomology collection includes several species of weevil.

Advanced Usage

• "Weevil" as a collective term: The word is often used to refer to beetles within the superfamily Curculionoidea, which contains tens of thousands of species.
  • The study focused on the evolutionary biology of the weevil.
• In a broader, sometimes informal context, "weevil" can describe any small beetle found in foodstuffs.
  • I found a weevil in the bag of oatmeal.

Variants and Related Words

• Boll weevil (n): A specific type of weevil () that is a notorious pest of cotton plants, damaging the cotton bolls.
• Grain weevil (n): A common name for weevils (e.g., ) that infest stored cereal grains.
• Weevily (adj, archaic): Infested with weevils.
  • The flour was old and weevily.

Synonyms

• Beetle: The general insect order (Coleoptera) to which weevils belong.
• Pest: Describes its harmful role in agriculture and storage.
• Snout beetle: A direct descriptive synonym referencing its most distinguishing physical feature.

Related Idioms or Phrases

• "Full of weevils": An idiom describing something, especially food, that is spoiled or infested. It implies poor quality or neglect.
  • That old sack of flour is probably full of weevils by now.

Học thuật

Noun

1. any of several families of mostly small beetles that feed on plants and plant products; especially snout beetles and seed beetles