[deth-woch, -wawch] 
| 1. | a vigil beside a dying or dead person. |
| 2. | a guard set over a condemned person before execution. |
| 3. | Also called deathwatch beetle. any of several beetles of the family Anobiidae that make a ticking sound as they bore through wood: the sound was once believed to be an omen of death. |
| deathwatch beetle n. Any one of several beetles of the family Anobiidae, especially Xestobium rufovillosum, whose head makes a clicking sound as it burrows into wood or wooden structures. The sound was superstitiously regarded as a portent of death. |
