Ads
RID® Lice - Treatment www.ridlice.com/Official-Site Learn How To Get RID® Of Lice. Treat, Remove And Control Lice.
Kill Lice In 45 Seconds www.clearlice.com/Get-Rid-Of-Lice Used by School Nurses & Frustrated Moms. Natural, Non-Toxic Treatment.
noun
plural of louse.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
louse
[n. lous; v. lous, louz] noun, plural lice [lahys] , for 1–3, lous·es for 4, verb, loused, lous·ing. noun
1.
any small, wingless insect of the order Anoplura (sucking louse) parasitic on humans and other mammals and having mouthparts adapted for sucking, as Pediculus humanus (body louse or head louse) and Phthirius pubis (crab louse or pubic louse)
2.
any insect of the order Mallophaga (bird louse, biting louse, or chewing louse) parasitic on birds and mammals, having mouthparts adapted for biting.
3.
4.
Slang. a contemptible person, especially an unethical one.
verb (used with object)
Verb phrases 5.
to delouse.
6.
louse up, Slang. to spoil; botch: Miscasting loused up the movie.
Origin:
before 900; 1910–15 for def 4; Middle English lous(e), luse, plural lise, lice; Old English lūs, plural lȳs; cognate with Dutch luis, German Laus, Old Norse lūs
before 900; 1910–15 for def 4; Middle English lous(e), luse, plural lise, lice; Old English lūs, plural lȳs; cognate with Dutch luis, German Laus, Old Norse lūs
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
|
Link To lice
00:10
Lice
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
| the offspring of a zebra and a donkey. |
Collins
louse (laʊs) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n , pl lice, louses | |
| 1. | any wingless bloodsucking insect of the order Anoplura: includes Pediculus capitis (head louse), Pediculus corporis (body louse), and the crab louse, all of which infest manRelated: pedicular |
| 2. | biting louse, bird louse any wingless insect of the order Mallophaga, such as the chicken louse: external parasites of birds and mammals with biting mouthparts |
| 3. | any of various similar but unrelated insects, such as the plant louse and book louse |
| 4. | slang an unpleasant or mean person |
| —vb | |
| 5. | to remove lice from |
| 6. | slang ( |
| Related: pedicular | |
| [Old English lūs; related to Old High German, Old Norse lūs] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
louse
O.E. lus, "parasitic insect infecting human hair and skin," from P.Gmc. *lus (cf. O.N., M.Du., O.H.G. lus, Ger. Laur). Slang meaning "obnoxious person" is from 1630s. The plural lice (O.E. lys) shows effects of i-mutation. The verb meaning "to clear
of lice" is from mid-15c.; to louse up "ruin, botch" first attested 1934.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
lice (līs)
n.
Plural of louse.
louse (lous)
n. pl. lice (līs)
Any of numerous small, flat-bodied, wingless biting or sucking insects of the orders Mallophaga or Anoplura, many of which are external parasites on humans.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary
louse definition[lɑʊs]
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Easton
Bible Dictionary
Lice definition
(Heb. kinnim), the creatures employed in the third plague sent upon Egypt (Ex. 8:16-18). They were miraculously produced from the dust of the land. "The entomologists Kirby and Spence place these minute but disgusting insects in the very front rank of those which inflict injury upon man. A terrible list of examples they have collected of the ravages of this and closely allied parasitic pests." The plague of lice is referred to in Ps. 105:31. Some have supposed that the word denotes not lice properly, but gnats. Others, with greater probability, take it to mean the "tick" which is much larger than lice.
Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
Example sentences
Head lice are tiny, wingless insects which make their home in human hair and feed on human blood.
Lice, interbreeding, and contaminants are killing off the species.
Feather lice, for example, live in the feathers of birds.
Pioneers battled everything from illness to lice to thieves.
Nearby Words
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
