flesh-eating
adjective
flesh-eat·ing
ˈflesh-ˌē-tiŋ 
: feeding on or destroying flesh or soft tissue
A Kentucky man was diagnosed with a flesh-eating infection after he went camping along the Green River.—
Dayton (Ohio) Daily News
Dayton (Ohio) Daily News… infestation by blowflies whose eggs hatch into flesh-eating maggots.—Kerry Capell
Kerry CapellBut according to Eugenie Clark, a University of Maryland zoologist, "the white shark, the largest flesh-eating fish, is anything but a mindless, constant eating machine."—Discover
DiscoverNatural history buffs will find … a 145-million-year-old foot from the Allosaur, one of the largest flesh-eating dinosaurs …—Carolyn Hughes Crowley
see also flesh-eating bacterium, flesh-eating disease
Carolyn Hughes CrowleyExamples of flesh-eating in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The new limited series picks up five years after that storyline, delving further into the timeline where a horrible virus turned Earth's mightiest heroes (and villains) into flesh-eating monsters.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Sep. 2025
The flesh-eating parasite, a larva of the Cochliomyia hominivorax fly, attacks warm-blooded animals, including humans.
—Peter Burke, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2025
Texas officials are telling residents to check their pets and livestock, and insisting on immediate use of pesticide bait after officials in Mexico confirmed an infection with the flesh-eating New World Screwworm (NWS) less than 70 miles from the US border.
—Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 24 Sep. 2025
Vibrio are a flesh-eating bacteria that thrive in saltwater and brackish water (a mix of salt and fresh water).
—Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2025
That’s the increase in cases of flesh-eating bacteria along the East Coast from 1988 to 2018, according to the CDC.
—Jade Walker, CNN Money, 5 Sep. 2025
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) became authorized Tuesday to allow the use of animal drugs to treat or prevent infestations caused by the New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite that has recently disrupted the cattle industry.
—Alejandra O’Connell-Domenech, The Hill, 19 Aug. 2025
Residents and visitors on the south end of Cape Cod are on alert after officials identified a person with a rare, flesh-eating bacterial infection in the area.
—Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 15 Aug. 2025
This case comes shortly after health officials warned residents in Gulf Coast states about flesh-eating bacteria following the death of eight people from infections.
—Vanessa Etienne, People.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Sep. 2025
The flesh-eating parasite, a larva of the Cochliomyia hominivorax fly, attacks warm-blooded animals, including humans.
—Peter Burke, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2025
Texas officials are telling residents to check their pets and livestock, and insisting on immediate use of pesticide bait after officials in Mexico confirmed an infection with the flesh-eating New World Screwworm (NWS) less than 70 miles from the US border.
—Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 24 Sep. 2025
Vibrio are a flesh-eating bacteria that thrive in saltwater and brackish water (a mix of salt and fresh water).
—Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2025
That’s the increase in cases of flesh-eating bacteria along the East Coast from 1988 to 2018, according to the CDC.
—Jade Walker, CNN Money, 5 Sep. 2025
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) became authorized Tuesday to allow the use of animal drugs to treat or prevent infestations caused by the New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite that has recently disrupted the cattle industry.
—Alejandra O’Connell-Domenech, The Hill, 19 Aug. 2025
Residents and visitors on the south end of Cape Cod are on alert after officials identified a person with a rare, flesh-eating bacterial infection in the area.
—Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 15 Aug. 2025
This case comes shortly after health officials warned residents in Gulf Coast states about flesh-eating bacteria following the death of eight people from infections.
—Vanessa Etienne, People.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Flesh-eating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flesh-eating. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share