Definition of mosquito
mosquitoes
alsomosquitos
: any of a family (Culicidae) of dipteran flies with females that have a set of slender organs in the proboscis adapted to puncture the skin of animals and to suck their blood and that are in some cases vectors of serious diseases
From the M-W Editors
Recent Examples of mosquito from the Web
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Wear a wide brim hat and sunscreen and put on mosquito repellent.
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Basil naturally repels mosquitoes, aphids, flies, mites and tomato-eating hornworms.
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In the Northwest, summer is short and sweet, with picture-perfect sunny days, hot but not broiling temperatures, fecund gardens, and fewer mosquitoes and bugs than other regions.
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But with milder winters and wetter springs the last few years, mosquito season is coming earlier.
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The bed was basic but serviceable, and the room came with a weak fan that provided some relief on sweltering nights (and helped keep mosquitoes at bay).
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This means mosquitoes, ticks and other insects are breeding and hatching earlier this spring.
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There are the thigh-high black leather boots worn by enlisted women to protect their legs from mosquitos before they were allowed to wear pants.
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A queen bed dressed in blues and purples was protected by a matching blue mosquito net and dangling turquoise beads.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mosquito'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Illustration of mosquito
Origin and Etymology of mosquito
Spanish, diminutive of mosca fly, from Latin musca — more at midge
MOSQUITO Defined for English Language Learners
mosquito
playDefinition of mosquito for English Language Learners
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: a small flying insect that bites the skin of people and animals and sucks their blood
MOSQUITO Defined for Kids
mosquito
playDefinition of mosquito for Students
mosquitoes
: a small fly the female of which punctures the skin of people and animals to suck their blood
Medical Dictionary
mosquito
playMedical Definition of mosquito
mosquitoes
alsomosquitos
: any of numerous dipteran flies of the family Culicidae that have a rather narrow abdomen, usually a long slender rigid proboscis, and narrow wings with a fringe of scales on the margin and usually on each side of the wing veins, that have in the male broad feathery antennae and mouthparts not fitted for piercing and in the female slender antennae and a set of needlelike organs in the proboscis with which they puncture the skin of animals to suck the blood, that lay their eggs on the surface of stagnant water, that include many species which pass through several generations in the course of a year and hibernate as adults or winter in the egg state, and that include some species which are the only vectors of certain diseases—see aedes, anopheles, culex
Illustration of mosquito
Learn More about mosquito
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Spanish Central: Translation of mosquito Nglish: Translation of mosquito for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of mosquito for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about mosquito
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