pismire

[ pis-mahyuhr, piz- ]

noun
  1. an ant.

Origin of pismire

1
1350–1400; Middle English pissemyre, equivalent to pisse to urinate + obsolete mire ant, perhaps <Scandinavian (compare Danish myre,Swedish myra), cognate with Dutch mier; pejorative name from stench of formic acid proper to ants

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British Dictionary definitions for pismire

pismire

/ (ˈpɪsˌmaɪə) /


noun
  1. an archaic or dialect word for an ant

Origin of pismire

1
C14 (literally: urinating ant, from the odour of formic acid characteristic of an ant hill): from piss + obsolete mire ant, of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse maurr, Middle Low German mīre ant

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