gadfly
Use Gadfly in a sentence
noun, plural gad·flies.
1.
2.
a person who persistently annoys or provokes others with criticism, schemes, ideas, demands, requests, etc.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To gadfly
Collins
World English Dictionary
gadfly (ˈɡædˌflaɪ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n , pl -flies | |
| 1. | any of various large dipterous flies, esp the horsefly, that annoy livestock by sucking their blood |
| 2. | a constantly irritating or harassing person |
| [C16: from | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
00:10
Gadfly
is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
gadfly
1620s, "fly which bites cattle," probably from gad "goad, metal rod" (early 13c.), here in the sense of "stinger," from O.N. gaddr "spike, nail," from P.Gmc. *gadaz "pointed stick;" but sense is entangled with gad (v.) and an early meaning of gadfly was also "someone who likes
to go about, often stopping here and there." Sense of "one who irritates another" is from 1640s (equivalent of L. oestrus).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Perhaps it's a common denominator of those who feel they must play the role of unwanted gadfly.
Send out a gadfly to study on-the-ground innovations happening elsewhere.
Research into the subject quickly identifies one major gadfly.
He was a gadfly, moving in and out of the local courts and federal agencies.
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