maggot

noun mag·got \ ˈma-gət \

Updated on: 14 Apr 2018

Definition of maggot

1 : a soft-bodied legless grub that is the larva of a dipterous insect (such as the housefly)

2 : a fantastic or eccentric idea : whim

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maggoty

play \-gə-tē\ adjective

See maggot defined for English-language learners

See maggot defined for kids

Examples of maggot in a Sentence

The rotten meat was infested with maggots.
the last maggot he got in his head resulted in a disastrous extramarital affair

Recent Examples of maggot from the Web

Once the bones have been carved out, they’ll be buried under a couple feet of clean sand to keep them out of sight while maggots and other insects find them and thoroughly clean them.

— National Geographic, "This Man Has Helped Give 460 Dead Whales a Second Life—As Art," 9 Apr. 2018
Trash Island is a harsh place where maggots pepper the scraps of food and skeletons inhabit the cages of dogs whose latches couldn't be unlocked to free them.

— julie hinds, Detroit Free Press, "Dogs vs. cats (and love vs. corruption, greed): Wes Anderson talks about 'Isle of Dogs'," 5 Apr. 2018
Trash juice and maggots would fall down their backs, covering their clothes and filling their shoes.

— jenny jarvie, latimes.com, "Recalling the labor slogan 'I am a man,' thousands mark 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s death," 4 Apr. 2018
Now diviners, instead of growing into maji, have become an underclass, heavily taxed and oppressed by a government who calls them maggots.

— constance grady, Vox, "If Children of Blood and Bone is the next big thing in YA, we’re all very lucky," 30 Mar. 2018
Garlic deters rabbits as well as tree borers, aphids, cabbage looper, codling moths, Japanese beetles, snails, carrot root flies, ants and cabbage maggots.

— OregonLive.com, "In vegetable gardens, good-neighbor planting makes all the difference," 29 Mar. 2018
Melchiorre reminded the jury of the state entomologist’s testimony that maggots do not enter intact skin, only openings in the skin.

— david owens, courant.com, "Robert Graham Convicted Of Murder," 24 Jan. 2018
Back in 2006, his breakout hit for the Discovery Channel, Man vs. Wild, had him charging alone through savage landscapes, famously consuming everything from maggots to elephant dung to his own pee.

— michael roberts, Outside Online, "How Bear Grylls Keeps on Surviving," 20 Mar. 2018
After a suspicious outbreak of dog flu in Megasaki City, dogs have been banished and are fending for themselves, scrounging for food among maggots and toxic waste.

— naomi fry, The New Yorker, "The Alpha Mutts of Wes Anderson’s “Isle of Dogs”," 16 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'maggot.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of maggot

Middle English magot, probably alteration of mathek, maddok; akin to Middle Low German mēdeke maggot, Old Norse mathkr, Old English matha

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

Other Insect Terms

drone, entomology, gadfly, pismire, proboscis, vespine

MAGGOT Defined for English Language Learners

maggot

noun

Definition of maggot for English Language Learners

: an insect that looks like a small worm and that is a young form of a fly

MAGGOT Defined for Kids

maggot

noun mag·got \ ˈma-gət \

Definition of maggot for Students

: a legless grub that is the larva of a fly (as a housefly)

Medical Dictionary

maggot

noun mag·got \ ˈmag-ət \

medical Definition of maggot

: a soft-bodied legless grub that is the larva of a dipteran fly (as the housefly) and develops usually in decaying organic matter or as a parasite in plants or animals