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wasp

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wasp

  [wosp]
Use wasp in a Sentence
–noun
1. any of numerous social or solitary hymenopterous insects of the Vespidae, Sphecidae, and allied families, generally having a long, slender body and narrow waist and, in the female, a stinger.
2. a person who is snappish or petulant.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME waspe, OE wæsp, metathetic var. of wæps, itself var. of wæfs, akin to D wesp, G Wespe, L vespa

Related forms:
wasplike, adjective
Get Rid Of Wasps
How To Identify A Wasp And Other Tips. The Latest Wasp Tips!
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WASP

  [wosp] Sometimes Disparaging and Offensive.
–noun
1. a white Anglo-Saxon Protestant.
2. a member of the privileged, established white upper middle class in the U.S.
–adjective
3. Waspy.
Also, Wasp.

Origin:
1955–60

WASP

  [wosp]
–noun
a member of the Women's Air Force Service Pilots, an organization disbanded in 1944.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To wasp
wasp   (wŏsp, wôsp)   
n.  Any of numerous social or solitary insects, chiefly of the superfamilies Vespoidea and Sphecoidea, having a slender body with a constricted abdomen, two pairs of membranous wings, mouths adapted for biting or sucking, and in the females an ovipositor often modified as a sting.

[Middle English waspe, from Old English wæps, wæsp.]
wasp'y adj.
WASP 1 or Wasp   (wŏsp, wôsp)   
n.  

  1. A white Protestant of Anglo-Saxon ancestry.

  2. A white, usually Protestant member of the American upper social class.


[W(hite) A(nglo-)S(axon) P(rotestant).]
WASP'i·ness, WASP'ish·ness n., WASP'y, WASP'ish adj.
WASP 2 or Wasp   (wäsp)   
n.  A member of Women's Airforce Service Pilots, organized during World War II as part of the U.S. Army Air Forces to ferry aircraft and to test new aircraft. The organization was disbanded in 1944.

[From W(omen's) A(irforce) S(ervice) P(ilots).]
WASP 3  
abbr.  Women's Airforce Service Pilots
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

WASP

An acronym for “white Anglo-Saxon Protestant” — a member of what many consider to be the most privileged and influential group in American society.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary
WASP

  1. n.
    a white Anglo-Saxon protestant. (Usually derogatory. Acronym.) : Would you call Pete a WASP?
  2. mod.
    having to do with white Anglo-Saxon protestants; waspish. : What a silly old WASP idea.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

wasp 
O.E. wæps, wæsp, altered (probably by influence of L. vespa) from W.Gmc. *wabis- (cf. O.S. waspa, M.Du. wespe, Du. wesp, O.H.G. wafsa, Ger. Wespe, Dan. hveps), from PIE *wobhes-/*wops- (cf. L. vespa, Lith. vapsa, O.C.S. vosa "wasp," O.Ir. foich "drone"), perhaps from *webh- "weave" (cf. Gk. hyphos "web," O.E. webb "web," O.N. vefa "to weave"). If that is the correct derivation, the insect would be so called for the shape of its nest. Waspish in the sense of "irascible, spiteful" is attested from 1566. Wasp-waist is recorded from 1870.

WASP 
acronym for White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, 1962, said to have been coined by University of Pennsylvania sociologist E. Digby Baltzell, but first recorded reference is in an article by E.B. Palmore in "American Journal of Sociology."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: wasp
Pronunciation: 'wäsp, 'wosp
Function: noun
: any of numerous social or solitary winged insects (especially families Sphecidae andVespidae) of the order Hymenoptera that usually have a slender smooth body with the abdomen attached by a narrow stalk, well-developed wings, biting mouthparts, and in the females and workers an oftenformidable sting, and that are largely carnivorous
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Abbreviations & Acronyms
Wasp
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant
WASP
World Association for Social Psychiatry
The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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