Recent Examples on the WebLegions of insects have evolved to help native plants with long-distance reproduction, including butterflies, moths, beetles, flies, midges and gnats.—Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 29 Mar. 2024 Safer Home Indoor Plug-In Fly Traps $18 $13 More than 5,000 shoppers have added this plug-in fly trap to their cart in the last month and that’s because with seed season, unfortunately, comes gnat season.—Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Mar. 2024 Discoloration, sticky leaves, webbing, or small gnats hiding in the soil are all signs to pass on the plant.—Kristin Guy, Sunset Magazine, 20 Mar. 2024 From the dry cleaner’s to the stationery store, from Zabar’s to Barney Greengrass, Chloe pursues the siblings, as pesky and insistent as a gnat.—The New Yorker, 31 Jan. 2024 The trap starts working immediately to attract, trap, and kill flies, fruit flies, moths, and gnats, protecting rooms up to 600 square feet.—Rachel Ahrnsen, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Oct. 2023 Find it on Amazon An Indoor Fly Trap That Doesn’t Have to Hide
This Indoor Fly Trap lures in flies, fruit flies, moths, gnats, and more with ruthless efficiency.—Kathy Barr, Rolling Stone, 26 Sep. 2023 The main concern is infections from a category of viruses called arboviruses, which are viruses transmitted to humans from arthropods—mostly insects such as fleas, ticks, gnats, and mosquitoes.—Larry Brilliant, Foreign Affairs, 20 Dec. 2022 Just pop the trap right in the soil like a stake, and wait for gnats to be attracted to the bright yellow sticky trap.—Helen Bradshaw, Popular Science, 9 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gnat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Old English gnætt; akin to Old English gnagan to gnaw
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of gnat was
before the 12th century
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