Illustration of flea
: any of an order (Siphonaptera) of small wingless bloodsucking insects that have a hard laterally compressed body and legs adapted to leaping and that feed on warm-blooded animals
Examples of flea in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The bites of infected fleas and rats spread plague.
—
Claire Gillespie, Health, 22 Apr. 2024
The fish were spawning, bunched in the shallows thicker than fleas on a hound.
—Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Related article There are ‘more ticks in more places’ — here’s how to avoid these bloodsuckers
A third route of infection is through another vector such as ticks, fleas and mosquitoes.
—Katia Hetter, CNN, 29 Feb. 2024
The plague is spread through flea bites or direct contact with the tissues or fluids of an infected animal.
—Stephanie Brown, Verywell Health, 21 Feb. 2024
While there are several hard-to-pronounce ingredients designed to kill fleas and flea eggs, this shampoo is quite gentle on dogs (even those with sensitive skin) and includes soothing aloe, oatmeal, and coconut extract.
—Madison Yauger, Peoplemag, 9 Feb. 2024
However, the Black Death, which wiped out anywhere from a third to half of Europe’s population in the 14th century, was caused by the same flea that likely jumped between humans, who also lacked basic hygiene during the Middle Ages.
—Sara Novak, Discover Magazine, 27 Dec. 2023
There are fleas and chamber pots and thumbed noses and a St. Patrick’s Day picnic that — hold on to your shillelagh!
—Dan Barry, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024
And if your trip entails any kind of outdoor component, make sure that your pet is up to date on their vaccinations and their flea and tick preventive treatments.
—Alexandra Domrongchai, Travel + Leisure, 4 Mar. 2024
Claire Gillespie, Health, 22 Apr. 2024
The fish were spawning, bunched in the shallows thicker than fleas on a hound.
—Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Related article There are ‘more ticks in more places’ — here’s how to avoid these bloodsuckers
A third route of infection is through another vector such as ticks, fleas and mosquitoes.
—Katia Hetter, CNN, 29 Feb. 2024
The plague is spread through flea bites or direct contact with the tissues or fluids of an infected animal.
—Stephanie Brown, Verywell Health, 21 Feb. 2024
While there are several hard-to-pronounce ingredients designed to kill fleas and flea eggs, this shampoo is quite gentle on dogs (even those with sensitive skin) and includes soothing aloe, oatmeal, and coconut extract.
—Madison Yauger, Peoplemag, 9 Feb. 2024
However, the Black Death, which wiped out anywhere from a third to half of Europe’s population in the 14th century, was caused by the same flea that likely jumped between humans, who also lacked basic hygiene during the Middle Ages.
—Sara Novak, Discover Magazine, 27 Dec. 2023
There are fleas and chamber pots and thumbed noses and a St. Patrick’s Day picnic that — hold on to your shillelagh!
—Dan Barry, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024
And if your trip entails any kind of outdoor component, make sure that your pet is up to date on their vaccinations and their flea and tick preventive treatments.
—Alexandra Domrongchai, Travel + Leisure, 4 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'flea.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Flea.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flea. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
flea
noun
: any of an order of small wingless bloodsucking insects with a hard body and legs used for leaping
Medical Definition
flea
noun
: any of the order Siphonaptera comprising wingless bloodsucking insects that have a hard laterally compressed body and legs adapted to leaping and that feed on warm-blooded animals see cat flea, chigoe sense 1, dog flea, rat flea, sand flea, sticktight flea
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