pest โ a destructive insect or other animal that attacks crops, food, or livestock
Part of speech: NOUN
Definition: a destructive insect or other animal that attacks crops, food, or livestock
Pronunciation (IPA): /pest/
Example Sentences
- My little brother is such a pest when I'm trying to study for exams.
- The farmer used organic methods to control pests without harmful chemicals.
- Mosquitoes are not just annoying pests; they can also spread diseases.
pest
NOUN[/pest/]
a destructive insect or other animal that attacks crops, food, or livestock
Insects destroying farmer's crops
No more pest near the nest, now we can rest!
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๐คPronunciation
๐ณEtymology
Origin
Derived from Latin pestis, meaning 'plague' or 'pestilence'. The word originally referred to deadly infectious diseases, particularly the bubonic plague (Black Death) of medieval times, before semantic extension to describe disease-carrying insects and troublesome individuals.
Breakdown
From Latin pestis (plague, pestilence), the root directly carries the sense of epidemic disease and has been adopted into English with minimal morphological modification.
๐ตRhyme
๐Collocations
๐Examples
โMy little brother is such a pest when I'm trying to study for exams.โ
โThe farmer used organic methods to control pests without harmful chemicals.โ
โMosquitoes are not just annoying pests; they can also spread diseases.โ
โDon't be a pest! I'll play with you after I finish my homework.โ
๐Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
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