insect

noun

ˈin-ˌsekt How to pronounce insect (audio)
Definition of insectnext
as in dwarf
a person of no importance or influence the magazine's editor in chief was notorious for treating staffers as insects, often not even bothering to learn their names

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of insect The suit alleges that the jail repeatedly fed inmates food containing mice and insects. — Liam Scott, Washington Post, 19 Oct. 2026 Many butterfly and moth species lay pupae in leaf litter, so throwing away leaves each fall may be getting rid of these beneficial insects, too. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026 Measuring between 1 and 5 millimeters, the insects feed on human blood. — Jessica Mekles, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026 Small mesh nets have been used before to keep insects away from crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers, and cabbage. — Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for insect
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insect
  1. dwarf
  2. cipher
  3. nobody
  4. lightweight
  5. number
Noun
  • While most citrus trees are too large for indoor growing, there are a few small or dwarf varieties of citrus that can be kept indoors year-round in pots.
    — Lauren Landers, The Spruce, 16 Oct. 2026
  • These explosions, known as hypernovas, were first proposed to explain unusual stars in the halo of our galaxy, the Milky Way, and in a neighboring dwarf galaxy.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of dwarf
Noun
  • There’s that vibrancy and, on the other side of the ledger, dead boys, ciphers, unfinished or unfinishable quests.
    — Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • But in my view, our relationships to animals, whose lives are untouched by the existential woes and artifices of personhood, are the richest and most evident ciphers for our own often inscrutable psyches.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 June 2026
Definition of cipher
Noun
  • In the trailer, the civilians are selling themselves as a new breed of nobodies.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Despite the tragicomic instability and the rotating cast of nobodies temporarily tasked with running the country, when seen in macroeconomic terms, Peru appears to be doing just fine, thank you.
    — Daniel Alarcón, New Yorker, 4 June 2026
Definition of nobody
Noun
  • In four debates, Collins worked to portray Jackson as an angry lightweight who wouldn’t be effective in the Senate.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The Burberry x Smythson notebooks are filled with Smythson’s signature blue lightweight paper, while the opening and closing pages feature a London map print inspired by the fall 2026 Burberry runway collection, or the house check.
    — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of lightweight
Noun
  • And the number of buyers -- roughly 929,000 -- represented the fewest on record dating back to 2013, while the tally of sellers jumped to its highest level since 2020.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Slide 1 of 15 The entries included license plate numbers, descriptions of vehicles and descriptions of law enforcement personnel Willie Herndon believed were following him, the complaint said.
    — Dennis Romero, NBC news, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of number

Browse Nearby Words

in secret
insect
insecticide
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Insect.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insect. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on insect

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about insect

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