killer bee

noun

: africanized bee

Examples of killer bee in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Either way, the spread of kudzu, Burmese pythons, Joro spiders, mosquitoes, killer bees, and Asiatic false hawk’s-beards, to name just a few, has tugged on some primal taproot in us. — Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026 Nash evaded pirates, snipers and killer bees before heroically succumbing to a lethal virus in the April 17 ABC episode. — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 26 Dec. 2025 Not to mention poison oak and killer bees and the potential for the hillside to give way and crush everything below it. — T. Coraghessan Boyle, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2025 Alabama's discovery has followed a spate of killer bee sightings across the country. — July 2, CBS News, 2 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of killer bee was in 1976

Rhymes for killer bee

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Browse Nearby Words

killer bar
killer bee
killer boat
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Cite this Entry

“Killer bee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/killer%20bee. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

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Medical Definition

More from Merriam-Webster on killer bee

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about killer bee

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