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: a wingless bloodsucking hemipterous bug (Cimex lectularius) sometimes infesting houses and especially beds and feeding on human blood
Examples of bedbug in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Like fleas or bedbugs, leaping thoughts that were both inconsequential and biting, vexing.
—Joyce Carol Oates, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024
Adult bedbugs are about the size of an apple seed and are long, brown or reddish-brown with flat bodies.
—Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2024
Overall interest in bedbug videos on TikTok rose, with the hashtag #bedbugs amassing 6 million views in the last seven days.
—Daysia Tolentino, NBC News, 5 Oct. 2023
What do bedbug bites look like? Bedbug bites are small red, itchy bumps sometimes surrounded by blisters or hives.
—Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2024
Online articles about bedbugs have also started to pop up regularly.
—Leila Sackur, NBC News, 30 Sep. 2023
Chicago has the most bedbugs, followed by New York and Phildelphia, says Orkin, which based its rankings on the number of commercial and residential bedbug treatments the company performed in metro areas December 2022-November 2023.
—Gary Stoller, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024
Clothing moths and bedbugs crawl under baseboards, traveling from adjoining units in an apartment building, or stowing away on other cargo entering your home.
—Lori Keong, Washington Post, 24 Aug. 2023
Pictures or videos of what appeared to be bedbugs on trains or subways were posted online.
—Aurelien Breeden, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bedbug.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1708, in the meaning defined above
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Cite this Entry
“Bedbug.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bedbug. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Kids Definition
bedbug
noun
bed·bug
ˈbed-ˌbəg
: a wingless bloodsucking bug sometimes infesting houses and especially beds
Medical Definition
bedbug
noun
bed·bug
ˈbed-ˌbəg
: a wingless bloodsucking bug (Cimex lectularius) sometimes infesting houses and especially beds and feeding on human blood
called also chinch
More from Merriam-Webster on bedbug
Nglish: Translation of bedbug for Spanish Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about bedbug
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