pest

noun \ ˈpest \

|Updated on: 13 Jul 2018

Definition of pest

1 : an epidemic disease associated with high mortality; specifically : plague

2 : something resembling a pest in destructiveness; especially : a plant or animal detrimental to humans or human concerns (such as agriculture or livestock production)

3 : one that pesters or annoys : nuisance

—

pesty

play \ˈpe-stē\ adjective

See pest defined for English-language learners

See pest defined for kids

Examples of pest in a Sentence

These insects are pests for farmers.
mice and other household pests
You're being a real pest. Would you leave us alone, please?

Recent Examples of pest from the Web

Recent technological advances, including compaction of transmitters, have even enabled its use with insects in the context of pollination, crop pests and conservation.

— katherine j. wu, Smithsonian, "How Tiny Trackers Could Help Humans Avoid Kissing Bugs’ Deadly Smooch," 9 July 2018
In April, Orkin, the pest control company, ranked Charlotte ninth and Raleigh-Durham No.

— joe marusak, charlotteobserver, "Hot dog! This Charlotte hot dog joint named best in the nation," 3 July 2018
Mike, who owns a pest control company out of Chicago, was out of town for work.

— ottavia zappala, azcentral, "Couple tackles home renovation project in Gilbert horse community," 14 June 2018
Cain had done pest-control work in her house months earlier.

— dorothy rabinowitz, WSJ, "‘Reasonable Doubt’ Review: Lives on the Line," 14 June 2018
According to a police report, 25-year-old Jake Knox was hired by Terminix, a pest control company to do a job at an Indian Hill home on Summerhouse Road.

— maytal levi, Cincinnati.com, "PD: Terminix worker took $60,000 in jewelry from Indian Hill home," 18 Apr. 2018
King said Keller Canyon used the Hunters Point soil as a cover layer over garbage — meant to keep rodents and pests out and odors in.

— kimberly veklerov, SFChronicle.com, "Pittsburg residents fear city dump tainted with radioactive waste from SF shipyard," 22 June 2018
NW Closed May 30 because of insects, rodents and other pests. Reopened June 1.

— Washington Post, "Health code violations in the District, Maryland and Virginia," 14 June 2018
His mosquito forecast: If the weather remains wet with frequent rain, big numbers of the pests will be with us all summer.

— don behm, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Heading outdoors? Here's how to protect yourself from a full bloom of mosquitoes and ticks in Wisconsin," 30 May 2018

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