plural bugs
1
a
: any of an order (Hemiptera and especially its suborder Heteroptera) of insects (such as an assassin bug or chinch bug) that have sucking mouthparts, forewings thickened at the base, and incomplete metamorphosis and are often economic pests
called also true bug
b
: any of various small arthropods (such as a beetle or spider) resembling the true bugs
c
: any of several insects (such as a head louse) commonly considered obnoxious
2
: an unexpected defect, fault, flaw, or imperfection
The software was full of bugs.
3
a
: a microorganism (such as a bacterium or virus) especially when causing illness or disease
b
: an often unspecified or nonspecific sickness presumed to be caused by such a microorganism
a stomach bug
4
: a concealed listening device
5
: a sudden enthusiasm
6
: enthusiast
a camera bug
7
: a prominent person
8
informal + disparaging
: a mentally unsound person
9
[from its designation by an asterisk on race programs]
: a weight allowance given apprentice jockeys
bugged; bugging
2
: to plant a concealed microphone in
: to lose one's composure : freak
—often used with out
bugged; bugging
of the eyes
: to cause to bug
his eyes were bugged with horror
Synonyms
Examples of bug in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Steven Levy, WIRED, 15 Feb. 2024
In recent days Tarkov players have found instances of armors being bugged and blocking too much or too little damage and no one really seems to be sure why.
—Mike Stubbs, Forbes, 11 Feb. 2024
His daily routine gets thrown some curveballs — a flaky coworker (Tokio Emoto) bugs him for quick cash to impress a hipster girlfriend (Aoi Yamada), an impromptu late-night beer with a terminally ill man (Masahiro Kômoto), the unexpected appearance of his niece (Arisa Nakano).
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2024
Above all, the thing that seems to be bugging people about Maestro is Cooper himself.
—Vulture, 3 Feb. 2024
If a person has neck pain that’s bugging them, they might be tempted to use a massage gun quite frequently, Neira explained.
—Julia Landwehr, Health, 26 Jan. 2024
A lot of my family and friends were bugging me about trying out for this role.
—EW.com, 17 Nov. 2023
If blackheads are bugging you, try Clinique’s Blackhead Solutions Self-Heating Blackhead Extractor, and for those unexpected pimples, the Peace Out Acne Salicylic Acid Day & Night Duo pimple patches help save the day—and are less than $20.
—Dorian Smith-Garcia, Parents, 15 Dec. 2023
Some of the things that bug me — bad grammar, bad signage — bugged Bill Gold, too.
—John Kelly, Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2023
Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 3 Apr. 2024
MacBook Picks Up important Fix Following the critical bugs found in macOS 14.4, Apple has pushed out an interim 14.4.1 release.
—Ewan Spence, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
But like many before her, Crow couldn’t cure herself of the music-making bug, and out of record retirement she’s come with Evolution.
—David Browne, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2024
One bug zapper had hundreds of reviews, but most were written about a capacitor motor fan; another bug zapper listing had reviews of pens and paper goods.
—Lauren Goode, WIRED, 28 Mar. 2024
The probe has had its fair share of bugs throughout the course of its trip, with one of its biggest blips beginning in November.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 26 Mar. 2024
Keke Palmer, Rihanna, and Beyoncé have all worn similar shades lately, and Zendaya has apparently gotten the blonde bug too.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 26 Mar. 2024
After four years, the pair decided to move to Manhattan, but the design bug only grew stronger.
—Rachel Gallaher, Robb Report, 23 Mar. 2024
Traditional farms may deploy toxic chemicals like organophosphates and organochlorines, while organic farms prefer to keep damaging bugs in check by encouraging the growth of their natural enemies, including particular beetles, spiders and birds.
—Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
Verb
Jonathan Karp, the publisher of Simon & Schuster, bugged me for years to write something.
—Steven Levy, WIRED, 15 Feb. 2024
In recent days Tarkov players have found instances of armors being bugged and blocking too much or too little damage and no one really seems to be sure why.
—Mike Stubbs, Forbes, 11 Feb. 2024
His daily routine gets thrown some curveballs — a flaky coworker (Tokio Emoto) bugs him for quick cash to impress a hipster girlfriend (Aoi Yamada), an impromptu late-night beer with a terminally ill man (Masahiro Kômoto), the unexpected appearance of his niece (Arisa Nakano).
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2024
Above all, the thing that seems to be bugging people about Maestro is Cooper himself.
—Vulture, 3 Feb. 2024
If a person has neck pain that’s bugging them, they might be tempted to use a massage gun quite frequently, Neira explained.
—Julia Landwehr, Health, 26 Jan. 2024
A lot of my family and friends were bugging me about trying out for this role.
—EW.com, 17 Nov. 2023
If blackheads are bugging you, try Clinique’s Blackhead Solutions Self-Heating Blackhead Extractor, and for those unexpected pimples, the Peace Out Acne Salicylic Acid Day & Night Duo pimple patches help save the day—and are less than $20.
—Dorian Smith-Garcia, Parents, 15 Dec. 2023
Some of the things that bug me — bad grammar, bad signage — bugged Bill Gold, too.
—John Kelly, Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2023
Noun
Those beautiful red berries are not easy to grow and farmers tend to rely on pesticides and soil fumigants to try and ward off bugs.
—Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 3 Apr. 2024
MacBook Picks Up important Fix Following the critical bugs found in macOS 14.4, Apple has pushed out an interim 14.4.1 release.
—Ewan Spence, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
But like many before her, Crow couldn’t cure herself of the music-making bug, and out of record retirement she’s come with Evolution.
—David Browne, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2024
One bug zapper had hundreds of reviews, but most were written about a capacitor motor fan; another bug zapper listing had reviews of pens and paper goods.
—Lauren Goode, WIRED, 28 Mar. 2024
The probe has had its fair share of bugs throughout the course of its trip, with one of its biggest blips beginning in November.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 26 Mar. 2024
Keke Palmer, Rihanna, and Beyoncé have all worn similar shades lately, and Zendaya has apparently gotten the blonde bug too.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 26 Mar. 2024
After four years, the pair decided to move to Manhattan, but the design bug only grew stronger.
—Rachel Gallaher, Robb Report, 23 Mar. 2024
Traditional farms may deploy toxic chemicals like organophosphates and organochlorines, while organic farms prefer to keep damaging bugs in check by encouraging the growth of their natural enemies, including particular beetles, spiders and birds.
—Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bug.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to bug
Dictionary Entries Near bug
Cite this Entry
“Bug.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bug. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
bug
1 of 2 noun1
a
: an insect (as a beetle) or other creeping or crawling invertebrate animal (as a centipede)
b
: any of an order of insects (as bedbugs and stinkbugs) that have sucking mouthparts and the forewings part leathery and part membranous and that undergo incomplete metamorphosis
called also true bug
2
: an unexpected mistake or imperfection
a bug in a computer program
3
: a disease-producing germ
also
: a disease caused by it
4
: fan entry 3, enthusiast
a camera bug
5
: a concealed listening device
bug
2 of 2 verb
bugged; bugging
1
: to place a concealed microphone in
3
: freak entry 3
—usually used with out
Medical Definition
bug
noun1
a
: an insect or other creeping or crawling invertebrate animal (as a spider)
—not used technically
b
: any of various insects (as the bedbug or cockroach) commonly considered obnoxious
c
: any of the order Hemiptera and especially of its suborder Heteroptera of insects that have sucking mouthparts, forewings thickened at the base, and that lack a pupal stage between the immature stages and the adult
called also true bug
2
a
: a microorganism (such as a bacterium or virus) especially when causing illness or disease
Enterococcus faecium, an especially nasty bug, often shrugs off even vancomycin, a last-resort antibiotic.—Avery Comarow, U.S. News & World Report
Avery Comarow, U.S. News & World Report
b
: an often unspecified or nonspecific sickness presumed to be caused by such a microorganism
a stomach bug
suffering from the flu bug
Geographical Definition
Bug
geographical name
1
river over 450 miles (720 kilometers) long in central Europe rising in western Ukraine, forming part of Ukraine–Poland and Poland–Belarus borders, and flowing into the Vistula River in Poland
2
river over 500 miles (805 kilometers) long in southwestern Ukraine flowing southeast to the estuary of the Dnieper River
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